SECOND  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY  OF  PENNSYLVANIA: 
18T5  to  1879. 


.THE  GEOLOGY 


OIL 


WARREN,  VENANGO,  CLARION,  AND  BUTLER  COUNTIES, 

INCLUDING 

SURVEYS  OF  THE  GARLAND  AND  PANAMA  CONGLOMERATES 

IN  WARBEN  AND  CBAWFORD,  AXD  IN  CHAUTAUQUA  Co.,  N.  Y., 

DESCRIPTIONS  OF  OIL  WELL  RIG  AND  TOOLS,  AND 


A  DISCUSSION  OF  THE  PREGLACIAL  AND  POSTGLACIAL  DRAIN- 
AGE  OF  THE  LAKE  ERIE  COUNTRY. 


JOHN    F.    CARLL. 


WITH  TWO  INDEXES,  23  PAGE  PLATES,  AND  AN  ATLAS  OF  22  SHEETS  OF  MAPS,  WELL- 
SECTIONS,  AND   WOKKINU  DRAWINGS  OF  WELL  BIG  AND  TOOLS. 


HARRISBURG: 

PUBLISHED    BY    THE    BOARD    OF   COMMISSIONERS 
FOK  THE  SECOND  GEOLOGICAL  SUBVKY. 

1880. 


Entered,  for  the  Commonwealth  of  Pennsylvania,  in  the  year  1880,  according 

to  acts  of  Congress, 
By  WILLIAM  A.  INGHAM, 

Secretary  of  the  Board  of  Commissioners  of  Geological  Survey, 

In  the  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 


Electrotyped  and  printed  by 

LANE  S.  HART,  State  Printer, 

Harrisburg,  Pa. 


BOARD    OF    COMMISSIONERS. 


His  Excellency,  HENRY  M.  HOYT,  Governor, 

and  ex-officio  President  of  the  Board,  Harrisburg. 

AEIO  PAEDEE,     -  Hazleton. 

WILLIAM  A.  INGHAM,  Philadelphia. 

HENEY  S.  ECKEET,  Reading. 

HENEY  McCoEMiCK,    -  Harrisburg. 

JAMES  MACFAELANE,  -  Towanda. 

JOHN  B.  PEAESE,  Philadelphia. 

JOSEPH  WILLCOX,  Philadelphia, 

Hon.  DANIEL  J.  MOEEELL,  -  Johnstown. 

HEISTEY  W.  OLIVEE,  Pittsburgh. 

SAMUEL  Q.  BEOWN,     -  -    -     -----    Pleasantville. 


SECRETARY   OF  THE  BOARD. 
WILLIAM  A.  INGHAM,      -    -  -    Philadelphia. 


STATE  GEOLOGIST. 
PETEE  LESLEY, Philadelphia. 


188O. 
ASSISTANT    GEOLOGISTS. 

PERSIFOR  FRAZER — Geologist  in  charge  of  the  Survey  of  Chester  county. 
AMBROSE   E.   LEHMAN— Topographical   Assistant,  for  mapping  the  South 
Mountain. 

E.  V.  D'IXVILLIERS — Topographical  Assistant,  for  mapping  the  Easton-Read- 
ing  range. 

FRANKLIN  PLATT— Geologist  hi  charge  of  the  Satistical  Survey  of  the  An- 
thracite coal  fields,  <fec. 

W.  G.  PLATT — Geologist  in  charge  of  the  Survey  of  Armstrong  and  Jefferson 
counties. 

R.  H.  SANDERS— Topographical  Assistant  in  Franklin  county. 

I.  C.  WHITE — Geologist  in  charge  of  the  Survey  of  Susquehanna  and  Wayne 
counties. 

J.  F.  C  ARLL — G  eologist  in  charge  of  the  Survey  of  the  Oil  Regions. 

H.  M.  CHANCE— Geologist  to  report  on  the  Mining  of  the  Anthracite  coal 
fields. 

C.  A.  ASHBURNER— Geologist  to  report  on  the  Geology  of  the  Anthracite 
coal  fields. 

A.  W.  SHEAFER — Assistant  in  the  Anthracite  coal  fields. 

F.  A.  GENTH— Mineralogist  and  Chemist  at  Philadelphia. 
F.  A.  GENTH,  Jr — Aid  in  the  Laboratory. 

A.  S.  MCCREATH —  Chemist,  in  charge  of  the  Laboratory  of  the  Survey,  223 

Market  street,  Harrisburg. 

JOHN  M.  STINSON— Aid  in  the  Laboratory  at  Harrisburg. 
C.  E.  HALL —  Geologist  in  charge  of  the  Survey  of  the  Philadelphia  belt, 

and  Palaeontologist  in  charge  of  the  Museum. 
M.  CHAPMAN— Aid  in  the  Museum. 
H.  C.  LEWIS— Volunteer  geologist  for  the  survey  of  the  gravel  deposits  of 

south-eastern  Pennsylvania. 
LEO  LESQUEREUX — Fossil  Botanist,  Columbus,  Ohio. 

E.  B.  HARDEN— Topographer  in  charge  of  Office  Work,  <tc.  1008  Clinton  street, 
Philadelphia. 

F.  W.  FORM  AN— Clerk  in  charge  of  the  Publications  of  the  Survey,  223  Market 
street,  Harrisburg. 

CHARLES  ALLEN— Aid. 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMISSION. 


PHILADELPHIA,  October  %5,  1880. 
To  His  Excellency  Governor  Henry  M.  Hoyt,  Chairman  of 

tJie  Board  of  Commissioners  of  the  Second  Geological 

Survey  of  Pennsylvania : 

SIE  :  The  important  report  on  the  oil  regions  of  Venango, 
Clarion,  and  Butler  counties,  which  I  have  the  honor  to 
transmit  to  you  for  publication,  covers  more  ground  than 
is  indicated  by  its  title,  and  will  be  found  to  be  not  only  a 
description  of  facts,  but  a  statement  of  the  principles  es- 
tablished by  them,  regarding  the  origin,  location,  abundance 
and  character  of  our  Petroleum  deposits,  and  of  the  history 
and  mode  of  their  exploitation. 

These  facts  and  principles  were  clearly  but  briefly  indica- 
ted by  Mr.  Caiil,  in  his  First  Report  of  Progress,  (I,)  a  vol- 
ume of  127  pages,  published  by  the  Board  in  1875. 

His  second  report,  consisting  almost  entirely  of  oil  well 
records,  was  published  by  the  Board,  in  a  volume  of  400 
pages,  in  1877. 

Three  years  have  passed,  and  the  value  of  that  report  lias 
been  fairly  tested.  It  is  a  treasury  of  facts,  obtained  at  a 
great  expense  of  time,  labor,  and  thought,  corrected  and 
verified  by  every  possible  means,  and  classified  and  indexed 
so  as  to  be  at  the  ready  command  of  the  statistician  the  ge- 
ologist, the  well  sinker,  the  civil  and  mining  engineer,  and 
the  general  reader. 

The  value  of  such  a  record  of  facts  can  hardly  be  over- 
estimated, and  oil  men  have  acknowledged  this  value.  The 
facts  given  in  that  report  were  sifted  from  a  much  larger 
collection  of  similar  data  of  every  grade  of  reliabilitj",  some 
of  which  proved  on  examination  to  be  worthless,  and  the 
rest  so  doubtful  as  to  be  dangerous  if  published  with  those 
( v  in. ) 


VI  III.    DEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

of  good  character.  If  the  board  be  of  opinion  that  they 
should  all  be  given  to  the  public,  it  will  only  be  necessary 
to  classify  them  to  make  another  volume  of  well  records 
equal  in  size  to  that  of  1877. 

The  present  report  (III)  makes  a  volume  of  about  500 
pages,  with  a  separate  atlas  of  illustrations  in  20  sheets, 
consisting  of: — maps  of  the  two  principal  oil  regions, 
that  of  Venango  and  Warren,  and  that  of  Clarion  and  But- 
ler counties  ;  maps  of  special  localities,  like  Spring  Creek, 
Titusville,  Franklin,  and  Parker ;  maps  of  northwestern 
Pennsylvania  and  contiguous  parts  of  Xew  York  and  Ohio, 
showing  the  pre-glacial  drainage  and  its  conversion  into  the 
present  post-glacial  river  system  ;  a  map  of  the  line  of  sur- 
vey through  Warren  and  Crawford  counties  into  Ohio,  to 
establish  the  outcrop  of  the  Garland  Conglomerate,  on  which 
the  geology  of  the  oil-sands  depends  for  its  explanation  ;  a 
large  number  of  vertical  sections,  carefully  selected  from 
the  most  authentic  oil-well  records,  and  so  adjusted  to  the 
horizon  of  the  Ferriferous  limestone  as  to  exhibit  to  the  eye 
the  geological  structure  of  the  region  ;  and  finally,  a  gen- 
eral profile  section  from  Lake  Erie  to  the  Virginia  State  line, 
showing  all  the  various  horizons  of  the  Dunkard  Creek, 
Smith's  Ferry,  Butler,  Yenango,  Warren,  Bradford,  and 
Canada  petroleums,  their  mutual  super-  and  sub-positions, 
their  universal  hypsometrical  slopes  southward  and  their 
several  relations  to  tide-level. 

The  preparation  of  these  illustrations  has  caused  Mr.  Carll 
and  his  aids,  as  may  well  be  supposed  by  those  who  are 
acquainted  with  such  work,  infinite  labor  and  trouble,  which, 
however,  will  be  amply  repaid  in  the  shape  of  usefulness 
to  this  and  future  generations  of  oil  men. 

For  a  special  trial  map  of  the  Bradford  oil-field,  which 
has  recently  superseded  and  in  a  good  degree  eclipsed  the 
others,  the  reader  of  this  report  must  be  referred  to  the  atlas 
accompanying  Mr.  Ashburner's  Report  of  Progress  in  Mc- 
Kean  county  (R)  just  published  by  the  Board. 

The  main  feature  of  the  report  is  the  settlement  of  the 
true  character  of  the  Venango  oil-sand  group  as  a  distinct 
and  separate  deposit,  with  characteristic  marks  distinguish- 


LETTEK  OF  TRANSMISSION.  III.  Vli 

ing  it  from  the  Palaeozoic  formations  of  a  preceding  and 
a  succeeding  age  ;  the  differentiation  of  the  group  into  three 
principal  and  other  subordinate  layers  of  gravelly  sand, 
holding  more  or  less  oil  and  gas ;  the  local  variability  of 
these  sands,  their  singular  persistency  beneath  long  and 
narrow  belts  of  country,  their  change  into  barren  shales 
elsewhere,  and  their  independence  of  other  oil-bearing  sands 
and  shales  of  an  earlier  and  of  a  later  date. 

Seeking  for  oil  in  unexplored  ground,  is  like  seeking  for 
tobacco  in  a  smuggler's  trunk.  The  traveler  and  his  lug- 
gage look  suspicious  ;  that  is  the  full  extent  of  the  customs 
officer' s  knowledge.  The  tobacco  must  be  found,  if  at  all, 
with  the  probe.  The  officer's  instinct  may  be  deceived  ; 
the  trunk  may  have  no  false  bottom  ;  or  the  false  bottom 
may  hold  no  tobacco. 

Just  so,  the  geologist  who  knows  the  district  knows  more 
than  the  oil  man,  but  he  does  not  know  whether  sand  exists 
at  a  given  spot  beneath  the  surface,  nor  whether,  if  there 
be  a  sand,  it  holds  oil  or  not,  nor  whether,  if  the  oil  be  there, 
it  will  flow  towards  a  drill-hole.  But  this  ignorance  of  facts, 
all  of  them  out  of  sight  and  out  of  reach  before  experi- 
ment, he  shares  with  everybody  else.  No  one,  absolutely 
no  one  can  know  such  facts  before  a  well  is  bored. 

But  what  the  geologist  does  know  is  the  depth  beneath 
the  surface  at  a  given  spot  at  which  a  given  oil-sand  in  the 
series  ought  to  lie,  and  consequently  the  depth  of  a  required 
trial  hole.  This  fact  men  who  are  not  geologists  may  also 
be  acquainted  with  in  the  immediate  neighborhood  of  pro- 
ductive wells,  or  in  a  local  district  where  they  are  familiar. 
But  let  them  go  to  other  localities,  more  or  less  distant,  and 
their  knowledge  becomes  ignorance,  because  it  is  restricted 
by  special  experience.  Whereas  the  geologist  carries  his 
knowledge  of  one  locality  with  him  to  another,  because  Ms 
knowledge  is  theoretical,  that  is,  reduced  to  system,  and 
subject  to  well  established  laws  of  earth  structure.  He 
knows  that  no  two  well  records  are  alike  in  detail.  He  is 
therefore  obliged  to  discover  their  general  or  classical  re- 
semblance. 

Until  practical  oil  men  learn  to  value  the  theoretical  prin- 


viil  III.        KEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

ciples  established  and  illustrated  by  Mr.  Carll  in  this  re- 
port it  cannot  be  expected  to  reach  its  highest  pitch  of  use- 
fulness. That  these  principles  are  not  visionary  will  be 
clear  to  every  thoughtful  reader  of  it.  That  they  are  sup- 
ported by  a  great  multitude  of  harmonized  facts  is  plainly 
shown  by  its  maps  and  sections.  That  they  have  virtually 
governed  geologists,  even  when  less  well  comprehended  than 
Mr.  Carll  has  now  made  them  to  be,  is  a  historical  fact  put 
on  record  by  printed  reports  of  experts.  That  they  ought 
to  govern  explorers  of  new  territory  follows  as  a  matter  of 
course ;  and  so  far  as  oil  seekers  consent  to  respect  the  rea- 
sonable results  of  long,  close,  and  experienced  investigation, 
so  far  will  their  pecuniary  risks  be  diminished,  and  the  ac- 
tual cost  of  discovery  be  reduced  to  a  minimum. 

A  flagrant  example  of  this  truth  is  given  by  Mr.  Carll  on 
page  137,  where  he  describes  the  disastrous  consequences  to 
a  great  many  people  of  a  purely  geological^we\\  theoretical 
mistake,  made  by  the  oil  men  of  the  "Fourth  Sand  Belt  of 
Butler  county,"  calling  themselves  practical  men  but  work- 
ing on  a  theory  all  the  same.  Practical  men,  so-called,  are 
just  as  theoretical,  and  much  more  theoretical,  than  men  of 
science;  the  distinction  being,  that  the  latter  base  their 
theories  on  a  wide  range  of  well  connected  facts,  while  the 
former  establish  theoretical  prejudices  upon  the  basis  of  a 
comparatively  narrow  circle  of  the  facts  with  which  they 
happen  to  be  very  familiar. 

The  Yenango  well  sinkers  had  grown  accustomed  to  the 
three  oil  sands  of  Oil  creek,  and  they  constructed  and  car- 
ried with  them  into  the  new  field  a  theory  of  three  sands 
which  was  merely  a  local  prejudice.  The  first  sand  they 
struck,  was  to  them,  theoretically,  the  Yenango  First  Sand, 
and  when  they  reached  a  second,  they  theorized  upon  it  as 
the  Yenango  Second  Sand.  All  they  had  to  do  now,  ac- 
cording to  their  former  practice  and  present  theory,  was  to 
go  one  stage  lower  to  the  Yenango  Third  Sand,  and  they 
would  be  sure  (theoretically)  to  get  great  wells.  But  when 
they  reached  their  theoretical  third  sand,  it  proved  to  be 
poor  in  oil.  Their  theory,  however,  arrested  them  here  in 
spite  of  their  being  practical ;  in  fact,  precisely  because  they 


LETTEK  OF  TRANSMISSION.  III.  i± 

were  practical  men.  They  could  not  be  induced  to  go 
deeper ;  they  knew  what  they  were  about ;  no  geologist 
could  teach  them  anything  ;  they  had  worked  on  Oil  creek ; 
they  knew  by  long  experience  and  at  great  cost  that  there 
existed  no  oil  beneath  the  third  sand  ;  why  then  should  they 
go  deeper. 

Now  the  fact  is,  that  as  long  as  they  remained  practical 
men  on  Oil  creek  they  were  all  right ;  their  local  theory 
was  a  good  one.  But  being  merely  practical  men  they  were 
unconscious  of  the  great  law  that  a  local  theory  is  not  good 
off  its  own  ground,  and  must  subject  itself  everywhere  else 
to  some  larger  theory,  constructed  slowly  and  painfully 
not  by  practical  but  by  theoretical  men,  by  men  of  science, 
by  men  who  know  the  relative  value  of  the  theories  of  prac- 
tical men. 

Had  the  land  owners  and  oil  producers  of  the  Fourth 
Sand  Belt  respected  geological  theories  enough  to  take  them 
into  consideration,  they  would  have  made  progress  towards 
profitable  truth  by  steps  taken  in  the  following  order :  1. 
Although  their  first  sand  resembled  the  first  sand  on  Oil 
creek,  they  would  have  suspected  that  the  same  kind  of 
sand  might  be  deposited  at  different  times  in  different  parts 
of  the  old  water  area,  and  therefore  that  resemblance  did 
not  prove  identity.  2.  They  would  have  considered  the 
evidence  which  Mr.  Carll  published  in  his  first  report,  prov- 
ing that  the  three  sands  of  Oil  creek  (sometimes  locally  sub- 
divided into  four  or  five)  form  a  single  group,  with  hun- 
dreds of  feet  of  soft  drilling  ground  over  it,  and  a  great 
depth  of  soft  drilling  ground  under  it ;  and  they  would  have 
kept  an  extra  careful  record  of  their  drillings  to  see  if  this 
proved  true  in  their  new  field.  3.  They  would  have  found 
thus  that  their  three  sands  in  Butler  county  did  not  form 
a  single  group,  as  on  Oil  creek,  but  that  the  upper  soft  drill- 
ing ground  lay  between  their  Butler  first  and  second  sands. 
4.  This  would  have  led  them,  theoretically,  to  deepen  their 
wells  in  order  to  make  their  oil  group  complete,  and  they 
would  have  found  a  fourth  sand  to  correspond  with  the 
bottom  (or  third)  sand  of  Oil  creek. 

The  consequences  of  their  scorn  of  theoretical  geologists 


X  III.     REPOKT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

are  depicted  on  page  137  of  this  volume.  Concluding  that 
they  were  working  in  a  poor  field  of  the  Third  sand,  (whereas 
they  were  really  exploiting  the  Second  sand,)  they  sold  out 
and  moved  off.  The  newcomers,  influenced  insensibly  by 
the  light  thrown  on  the  region  by  the  Geological  Survey, 
tried  the  experiment  of  sinking  deeper,  struck  the  true 
Third  sand,  and  restored  the  prosperity  and  reputation  of 
the  Butler  belt. 

But  clinging  still  to  the  old  error  of  supposing  the  upper- 
most sand  to  be  the  Venango  First  (whereas  it  was  the  Third 
Mountain  Sand,  or  Berea  Grit  of  Ohio  ;  the  Pithole  Grit  of 
this  Report)  they  called  the  rich  new  lowest  sand  thus  ob- 
tained the  Fourth  Sand,  and  insisted  on  placing  it  under- 
neath the  Yenango  Third,  whereas  it  is  identical  with  it. 

Not  only  do  "  practical  oil-men"  theorize  in  spite  of  them- 
selves (as  their  drillings  along  certain  compass  lines  show 
in  a  remarkable  manner)  but  they  are  as  capable  of  theo- 
rizing well  and  reaching  just  conclusions  as  thoroughbred 
geologists  are,  if  they  would  take  the  pains  1,  to  observe 
the  facts,  2,  to  exhibit  them  properly  on  paper,  and  3,  to 
compare  together  a  sufficient  number  of  them,  so  as  to  dis- 
cover their  real  connection  and  relationship.  Xo  shrewder 
or  more  intellectual  people  exist.  JN"o  better  observers  live. 
If  they  only  believed  in  scientific  methods  of  research  they 
would  need  no  enlightenment  from  geologists.  But  theydes- 
pise  a  slow,  painstaking,  accurate,  wide  extended  system- 
atic investigation.  They  bring  a  handful  of  sand  to  a  geol- 
ogist and  expect  him  to  declare  from  an  examination  of  it 
alone,  apart  from  all  other  circumstances,  what  rock  it  comes 
from,  how  much  oil  that  rock  probably  holds,  and  how  fast 
the  oil  from  it  will  .probably  flow  or  be  pumped.  To  furnish 
such  an  opinion  would  be  mere  quackery.  And  yet  on  such 
specimens  and  such  opinions — opinions  called  ''practical" 
but  which  are  purely  and  simply  "theoretical,"  mere  pre- 
judices adopted  from  some  former  and  distant  experience — 
costly  and  futile  attempts  are  made  to  open  new  oil  fields  in 
barren  measures. 

Oil  men  ought  to  make  themselves  their  own  geologists. 
The  elements  and  principles  of  geology  ought  to  be  part  of 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMISSION.  III.  xi 

their  stock  in  trade.  They  have  more  ample  opportunities 
for  acquiring  this  kind  of  useful  knowledge  than  any  other 
class  of  men  living.  They  know  and  feel  the  necessity  for 
examining  with  minute  attention  the  oil  sands,  and  they  do 
this  work  admirably  well  when  they  reach  them  ;  but  they 
pay  no  heed  to  the  geology  of  the  other  parts  of  their  bore- 
hole. If  they  did,  the  knowledge  they  would  thus  get 
would  be  of  far  more  importance  to  them,  for  it  would  en- 
able them  to  compare  one  well  with  another  and  thus  cover 
the  true  relationships  of  the  oil  sands.  They  form  a  theory 
and  then  examine  the  facts.  A  geologist  collects  and  puts 
together  the  facts  before  he  allows  himself  to  construct  a 
theory.  They  theorize  that  the  oil  sand  they  want  lies  so 
many  hundred  feet  beneath  the  surface,  and  they  pay  little 
or  no  attention  to  the  hundreds  of  feet  of  various  measures 
through  which  they  pass  in  descending  to  that  depth. 
No  wonder  that  they  are  as  liable  to  blunder  in  sinking  a 
second  hole  as  in  sinking  the  first.  In  fact  by  this  utter 
disregard  of  his  well  records,  except  just  where  low  sands 
lie,  a  man  may  sink  a  hundred  wells  and  have  no  more  true, 
safe,  reliable  knowledge  of  the  subject  than  he  had  at  first. 
Nor  does  time  seem  to  cure  the  evil,  but  only  to  confirm  it. 
What  was  a  reproach  to  the  oil  well  sinker  of  ten  or  fifteen 
years  ago,  is  a  reproach  to  the  generality  of  oil  well  sinkers 
in  1880.  Where  are  the  records  of  the  scores  of  thousands 
of  holes  bored?  And  how  absurdly,  suicidally indefinite, 
inexact,  fragmentary  and  unreliable  are  the  few  records 
which  have  been  made  and  preserved !  What  an  immense, 
what  an  irretrievable  loss,  not  to  science  merely,  but  to  the 
intellectual  stock  in  trade  of  oil  men,  has  happened ! 

It  is  impossible  for  a  geologist  not  to  feel  and  speak 
warmly  on  such  a  subject ;  and  it  would  be  shirking  a  sacred 
duty  if  the  Geological  Survey  of  Pennsylvania  did  not  do 
its  best  to  place  this  flagrant  omission  of  common  business 
precaution,  this  wholesale  waste  of  valuable  business  infor- 
mation, this  fruitful  source  of  business  embarrassment,  dis- 
traction, and  disaster,  in  its  true  form  and  colors  before  the 
eyes  of  the  whole  oil  producing  community. 

To  return  to  the  "subject  of  the  importance  of  geological 


xii  III.         REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOH^  F.  CARLL. 

generalizations  as^seen  in  a  practical  light,  I  may  be  per- 
mitted to  describe  in  the  first  person  a  singular  case  in  point. 

In  1841,  I  was  ordered  by  the  chief  of  the  First  Gfeolog- 
ical  Survey  to  report  on  the  counties  lying  along  the  New 
York  line,  and  down  the  eastern  bank  of  the  Allegheny 
river,  as  far  as  the  Kiskiminitas.  Other  assistants  on  that 
survey  had  already  discovered  and  reported  the  geological 
structure  of  the  Allegheny  river  and  Beaver  river  water 
basins  ;  and  the  rate  of  descent  of  the  rocks  southward  and 
south  westward  in  relation  to  tide  level  had  been  calculated. 
My  business  was  to  follow  and  locate  upon  the  map  the  an- 
ticlinal and  synclinal  rolls  which  locally  change  and  modify 
this  general  dip,  and  to  identify  the  principal  coal  beds  over 
a  large  area. 

After  the  discovery  of  petroleum  (which  of  course  did 
not  in  the  least  set  aside  or  essentially  change  the  structure 
of  western  Pennsylvania  as  established  by  the  First  Survey) 
I  happened  to  be  employed  by  the  Brady's  Bend  Company 
to  examine  their  property,  and  to  give  them,  among  other 
items,  an  opinion  upon  the  probable  existence  and  depth 
of  oil  beneath  it.  To  do  this,  I  merely  did  what  any  geolo- 
gist who  had  thoroughly  studied  that  country  would  have 
done ;  I  calculated  the  vertical  distance  from  the  oil  sand 
on  Oil  creek  up  to  coal  A ;  then  I  calculated  the  dip  of  the 
measures  between  Oil  creek  and  Brady's  bend  ;  and  then  I 
identified  coal  A  at  Brady's  bend.  I  reported  that  the  Ve- 
nango  oil  sand,  if  it  extended  under  ground  as  far  as 
Brady  s  Send,  ought  to  lie  at  1100  feet  beneath  water  level. 
Any  geologist  who  knew  the  country  could  have  done  this. 
It  required  no  genius,  no  uncommon  knowledge,  nothing 
but  a  plain,  simple,  systematic,  or  scientific,  in  other  words, 
true  theoretical  method  of  applying  known  facts  for  dis- 
covering the  unknown.  Any  oil  man  could  have  done  the 
same,  if  he  had  noticed  the  rock-layers  as  he  went  up  and 
down  the  river,  and  put  this  and  that  carefully  together. 

Yet,  when  after  a  few  months  oil  was  actually  struck  at 
Brady's  bend  within  a  few  feet  of  the  depth  which  I  had 
assigned  to  it,  the  astonishment  of  all  classes  of  oil  men 
was  ludicrously  extravagant ;  a  score  or  two  of  copies  were 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMISSION".  .III.  xiii 

made  from  the  manuscript  report,  and  these  copies  passed 
from  hand  to  hand  as  precious  things,  and  their  author  was 
looked  upon  as  a  prodigy  of  mental  penetration,  and  was 
offered  large  sums  of  money  to  locate  wells  in  different  dis- 
tricts ;  none  of  which  offers,  of  course,  were  accepted,  be- 
cause he  was  as  ignorant  of  the  actual  existence  of  an  oil 
bearing  sand  in  any  given  locality  as  everybody  else. 

The  story  has  its  moral.  Let  "practical  men"  believe 
in  and  respect  the  slowly,  carefully  reached*  conclusions  of 
"theoretical  men "  enough  to  take  them  into  consideration, 
so  far  as  to  comprehend  them,  and  to  govern  themselves  by 
them  in  their  own  collection  and  collation  of  facts  relating 
to  their  own  pecuniary  interests. 

When  a  geologist  like  Mr.  Carll  has  spent  years  in  sifting 
and  -comparing  the  data  of  a  great  geological  problem,  and 
publishes  his  mature  conclusions  in  a  modest,  earnest,  plain, 
unvarnished  report  like  that  which  is  contained  in  this  vol- 
ume, it  is  probable,  to  say  the  very  least,  that  its  value  to 
practical  men  like  oil  producers,  struggling  with  immense 
obstacles  to  fortune,  will  be  real  in  proportion  to  the  pains 
they  take  to  understand  it. 


It  will  be  noticed  that  great  pains  was  taken  and  much 
time  and  labor  spent  outside  of  the  oil  region  proper,  along 
the  northern  outcrop  of  the  remarkable  pebble  rock  deposit 
which  caps  the  hills  on  both  sides  of  the  Brokenstraw  above 
Garland  station  in  Warren  county,  as  well  as  the  plateau 
east  of  Warren,  and  the  hills  on  both  sides  of  the  Philadel- 
phia and  Erie  railroad,  south  and  east  from  Warren  into 
McKean  county.  Outlying  masses  of  this  rock  crown 
isolated  summits  to  the  west  of  Wrightsville  and  Lottsville, 
and  within  three  miles  of  the  New  York  State  line.  Further 
north  nothing  of  it  is  seen ;  but  similar  outlying  patches 
exist  in  Crawford  county,  and  are  marked  on  the  geological 
colored  map  of  Crawford  and  Erie  counties,  intended  to  ac- 
company Professor  Wright's  Report  Q4'*.  The  survey  of 

*The  geological  map  of  Warren  county  has  been  prepared  for  the  press} 
but  awaits  important  additions. 


XIV  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOII^  F.  CARLL. 

the  general  line  of  outcrop  is  described  in  the  first  five  chap- 
ters of  this  report  (I.I.I.)  where  its  close  study  is  justified  ; 
since  it  plainly  appears  that  this  so-called  Garland  con- 
glomerate is  the  Sharon  conglomerate  of  Crawford  and 
Mercer  counties,  and  the  Ohio  conglomerate  west  of  the 
State  line  ;  is  also  the  Olean  conglomerate  of  McKean 
county  ;  is  the  bottom  sub-division  of  the  great  Pottsville 
conglomerate  (No.  XII)  of  northern,  middle,  and  eastern 
Pennsylvania,  'surrounding  the  Anthracite  coal  basins,  and 
is  the  Second  Mountain  sand  of  the  oil  producers  on  Oil 
creek  and  elsewhere.  It  is,  therefore,  in  a  good  degree,  the 
key  to  the  whole  geology  of  Northwestern  Pennsylvania. 

But  when  these  facts  were  settled,  there  arose  questions 
concerning  a  great  pebble-rock  formation  at  Panama,  and 
around  Lake  Chautauqua  in  New  York  ;  and  it  was  impor- 
tant to  know  whether  this  passed  into  Pennsylvania  under- 
neath the  Garland  ;  and  at  what  distance  ;  and  whether  it 
bore  any  relation  to  the  Yenango  oil  sands.  Professor 
White  will  present  in  his  report  on  Erie  county  his  reasons 
for  believing  it  to  be  the  Venango  Third  Sand.  Mr.  Caiil, 
in  chapter  6  of  this  volume,  describes  the  rock  as  far  east 
as  Salamanca,  and  shows  that  it  fades  away  into  fine  sands 
and  shales  southward  in  Pennsylvania  before  reaching  the 
Venango  oil  belt,  just  as  the  Garland  or  Olean  conglomer- 
ate fines  away  into  soft  sands  and  shales  southward.  The 
coarseness  of  these  deposits  at  their  extreme  northern  out- 
crops seems  to  point  to  a  Palaeozoic  shore  in  that  direction  ; 
but  every  trace  of  the  rivers  which  brought  these  pebbles 
down  to  the  shore  of  the  ancient  sea,  of  the  currents  or 
tide-runs  which  distributed  them  laterally,  and  of  the  high 
lands  which  such  rivers  must  have  drained,  has  been  swept 
away  in  the  ancient  general  and  profound  erosion  of  the 
country  now  occupied  by  the  chain  of  the  Great  Lakes.* 

Between  the  upper  Garland-Olean  deposit  and  the  much 
older  and  deeper  Panama- Salamanca  deposit,  Mr.  Carll  has 
reason  to  believe  that  one  and  perhaps  two  other  similar 
deposits  exist,  forming  rock  cities  along  the  State  line  ;  but 
he  is  not  prepared  in  this  report  to  present  the  facts  on 

*See  discussion  in  report  T,  on  Blair  county. 


LETTEK  OF  TRANSMISSION.  III.  XV 

which  this  opinion  is  founded.  One  of  these  may  possibly 
represent  the  Third  Mountain  Sand  (Pithole  or  Berea  Grit) 
and  the  other  one  of  the  oil  sands  ;  but  this  must  be  left  to 
future  investigation.  The  relationships  of  the  Pithole  Grit 
of  Venango  to  the  Berea  Grit  of  Ohio,  however,  is  amply 
discussed  in  Chapters  7  and  8  on  the  Mountain  Sands. 

The  attention  of  oil  men  will  no  doubt  be  chiefly  directed 
to  the  description  of  the  oil  sands  themselves,  and  of  the 
areas  which  they  occupy,  in  Chapters  9  to  16,  23,  24,  and  25  ; 
while  the  curiosity  of  business  men  everywhere  will  be 
gratified  by  the  elaborate  descriptions  of  the  whole  process 
of  oil  seeking,  drilling  and  pumping ;  its  machinery,  its  meth- 
ods, its  obstacles,  its  improvement,  its  rate,  quantity,  and 
cost,  as  given  in  Chapters  27,  28,  and  29. 

The  origin  of  petroleum  is  still  an  unsolved  problem,  and 
Chapter  26  merely  suggests  queries  respecting  it.  That  it 
is  in  some  way  connected  with  the  vastly  abundant  accu- 
mulations of  Palaeozoic  sea  weeds,  the  marks  of  which  are 
so  infinitely  numerous  in  the  rocks,  and  with  the  infinitude 
of  coralloiol  sea  animals,  the  skeletons  of  which  make  up 
a  Inrire  part  of  the  limestone  formations  which  lie  several 
thousand  feet  beneath  the  Venango  oil  sand  group,  scarcely 
admits  of  dispute  ;  but  the  exact  process  of  its  manufac- 
ture, of  its  transfer,  and  of  -its  storage  in  the  gravel  beds, 
is  utterly  unknown.  That  it  ascended  rather  than  descended 
into  them  seems  indicated  by  the  fact  that  the  lowest  sand 
holds  oil  when  those  above  do  not,  and  that  upper  sands 
hold  oil  where  they  extend  beyond  or  overhang  the  lower. 

The  chemical  theory,  so-called,  which  looks  upon  petro- 
leum as  condensed  from  gas,  the  gas  having  been  previously 
distilled  from  the  great  black  shale  formations  (Marcellus 
and  Genessee)  must  face  the  objection  that  such  a  process,  if 
chemically  possible,  which  is  doubtful,  ought  to  have  dis- 
tributed the  oil  everywhere,  and  permanently  blackened 
and  turned  into  bituminous  shales  the  entire  thickness  of 
this  part  of  the  earth  crust  for  several  thousand  feet.  It 
fails  to  explain  the  petroleum  obtainable  from  the  Cannel 
coals,  and  from  the  roof  shales  of  Bituminous  coal  beds. 
And  it  fails  also  to  explain  the  entire  absence  of  petroleum 


XVI  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

from  immense  areas  of  not  only  shales,  but  sand  and  gravel 
rocks,  equally  underlaid  by  the  Marcellus  and  Genessee  for- 
mations. 

The  supposed  connection  of  petroleum  with  anticlinal 
and  synclinal  axes,  faults,  crevices,  cleavage  planes,  &c. 
is  now  a  deservedly  forgotten  superstition.  Geologists  well 
acquainted  with  the  oil  regions  never  had  the  slightest  faith 
in  it,  and  it  maintained  its  standing  in  the  popular  fancy 
only  by  being  fostered  by  self-assuming  experts  who  were 
not  experienced  geologists. 

The  case  of  the  oil-bearing  glacial  and  river  gravels  about 
Titusville  is  very  curious  ;  their  description  and  the  history 
of  the  "Grasshopper  well"  flurry  given  in  Chapter  36  will 
repay  perusal. 

These  river  gravels  are  connected  with  a  wonderful  deposit 
of  Canadian  rock  fragments  not  only  upon  but  to  the  depth 
of  several  hundred  feet  beneath  the  present  surface  of 
Northern  Pennsylvania,  a  deposit  which  forms  a  great  belt 
more  than  a  thousand  miles  long  across  the  continent,  from 
Cape  Cod  in  Massachusetts  to  Iowra  and  Minnesota  beyond 
the  Mississippi  river.  Brought  from  the  north  by  a  sheet 
of  moving  ice  which  once  filled  the  great  lakes  and  rode 
over  the  highest  mountains  to  the  south  of  them — burying 
all  New  England  and  New  York,  Northern  New  Jersey, 
Northern  Pennsylvania,  the  AVestern  Reserve  in  Ohio,  and 
large  portions  of  the  States  lying  further  west — projecting 
long  tongues  or  slowly  moving  torrents  of  solid  ice  south- 
ward as  far  as  and  even  beyond  the  Ohio  river  in  Kentucky, 
and  driving  slowly  before  it  the  reindeer,  musk  ox,  cari- 
bou, moose,  and  other  arctic  animals  whose  bones  are  found 
in  the  diluvial  clays  of  the  Kentucky  caves  ;  while  the 
walrus  inhabited  the  shores  of  the  Atlantic  as  far  south  as 
the  Ashley  river  i:i  South  Carolina,*  and  the  Esquimaux 

*  Even  if  the  walrus  tusks  found  at  Long  Branch,  N.  J.,  by  Prof.  J.  F.  Frazer 
in  1853  and  Prof.  George  H.  Cook  afterwards,  (described  by  Leidy,  in  Trans. 
A.  P.  8.  Phila,  XI,  1857),  in  Accomac  county  Virginia  (described  by  Michell, 
Smith  and  Cooper,  Ann.  Lye.  Nat.  His.  N.  Y.  II,  1828,)  had  been  brought 
down  on  ice  bergs  by  the  Arctic  in-shore  current,  the  skeleton  found  (1878) 
at  a  depth  of  7  feet  in  the  clay  beds  of  Portland,  Me.  (described  with  the  others, 
by  J.  J.  Allen  in  Hist.  N.  A.  Pinninds,  Hayden's  Survey  of  the  Terr.  1880,  p. 


LETTEE  OF  TKANSMISSIOIST.  III. 

race  no  doubt  accompanied  these  animals  into  the  Gulf 
States  (just  as  it  did  in  France  as  far  south  as  the  Pyrenees) 
this  deposit  of  moraine  matter,  sand,  clay,  scratched  rocks 
and  hugh  bowlders  filled  up  the  valleys  by  which  our  rivers 
had  previously  flowed  into  Lake  Erie,  and  turned  their 
waters  southward  into  the  Ohio. 

This  interesting  episode  in  the  drama  of  the  Glacial  Age 
of  geology  is  described  in  great  detail  by  Mr.  Carll  in  Chap- 
ters 30  to  34,  adding  largely  to  our  knowledge  of  a  subject 
which  is  commanding  the  close  attention  of  the  best  geol- 
ogists of  Europe  and  America,  and  which  demands  much 
more  attention  than  the  Survey  has  been  able  to  give  to  it 
yet  in  the  northeastern  counties  of  the  State. 

Besides  the  two  maps  which  will  be  found  in  the  Atlas 
accompanying  this  report,  and  which  are  intended  to  show 
how  our  rivers  flowed  before  the  invasion  of  the  Ice,  a  map 
was  partially  prepared  to  show  the  barrier  divide  through 
from  central  New  York  to  Illinois  ;  but  difficulties  of  con- 
struction arose  which  would  have  delayed  too  long  the 
publication  of  the  report.  This  map  is  spoken  of  in  the 
text  as  Map  II  bis. 

It  only  remains  for  me  to  express  the  hope  that  the  Legis- 
lature will  provide  -for  and  the  Board  order  as  close  and  de- 
tailed a  survey  and  report  of  the  Bradford  oil-field  as  of 
the  older  and  just  at  present  less  important  fields.  The 
time  will  come  however  when  a  larger,  less  exciting,  but 
more  healthy  and  profitable  exploitation  of  the  now  almost 
abandoned  belts  will  recur  ;  and  then  the  facts  and  princi- 
ples embodied  in  this  report  will  receive  a  proper  estimation. 
Very  respectfully, 

J.  P.  LESLEY. 

60,  61)  the  skull  found  (1874)  in  the  inland  diluvium  at  St.  Menehoulde  in 
France,  (Bull.  Geol.  Soc.  France  II  1874),  and  the  tusk  found  in  the  Ashley 
river  phosphate  beds  (described  by  Leidy,  Jour.  Acad.  Nat.  Sci.  Phila.  VIII. 
1877,)  all  show  that  the  Walrus  was  a  resident  of  our  Atlantic  coast  in  the  Ice 
age  ;  as  a  different  and  now  extinct  species  of  it  had  been  in  Tertiary  times. 


Bill. 


Xviii  III.      REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

TABLE  OF   CONTENTS. 


Pages . 

Chapter  1.  The  topography  and  drainage  of  the 
outcrop  of  the  Garland  Conglomerate  and 
Lake  Erie, 1  to  10 

Chapter  2.  The  Garland  Conglomerate ;  survey 
of  its  outcrop  ;  place  in  the  series  ;  part  of 
the  Pottsville  Conglomerate  formation  No. 
XII;  underlying  Sub- Garland  sandstone,  .  11  to  19 

Chapter  3.  The  Garland  Conglomerate  and  under- 
lying measures  in  Warren  county  ;  Pike's 
rocks  ;  Freehold  township ;  Garland  Station  ; 
Spring  creek ;  West  Spring  creek ;  McClay'  s 
hill, 23  to  33 

Chapter  4.  The  same  in  Crawford  county  ;  at 
Bate's  hill;  Southwick's  summit ;  Hickory 
Corners ;  Meadville  ;  Ellis  or  Thorpe  quarry  ; 
Citizen's  oil  well ;  Meadville  Drift  notes,  .  33  to  42 

Chapter  5.  The  Sharon  Coal,  the  Garland  Con- 
glomerate and  under-rocks  from  Meadville 
into  Ohio  ;  Miller's  quarry ;  Mushroom  farm  ; 
Jackson's  quarry  ;  linger' s 
run  ;  Adamsville  quarry  ; 
Snodgrass  ore  bank ;  Christy's  quarry  ;  Snod- 
grass  quarries  ;  J.  H.  Christy's  quarry ;  and 
quarries  in  Ohio, 34  to  56 

Chapter  6.  The  Panama  Conglomerate  in  New 
York  State,  at  Panama  Rock  city,  Block- 
ville,  Ashville,  Ellory  Centre,  William's, 
Lewis,  and  Chautauqua  quarries ;  and  in 
Pennsylvania  at  Bleaksley,  Middleton,  and 
Moravian  or  Carroll  quarries ;  average  fall 
per  mile  southward  ;  influence  on  the  topo- 
graphy ;  quarries  in  Erie  and  Crawford  coun- 
ties ;  fossils ;  associated  shales ;  dip  and 
physical  changes,  as  shown  by  the  Eureka 
well,  Lottsville  well ;  inferences ;  overlying 
measures  ;  Salamanca  Conglomerate  ;  Den- 
nis oil  well  in  McKean  county, 57  to  79 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS.  III.  xix 

Pages. 

Chapter  7.  The  Mountain  Sand  series  and  its  con- 
trast with  the  underlying  Oil  Sand  Group ; 
Pleasantville  section ;  First,  Second,  and 
Third  mountain  sands ;  Pithole  Grit,  the 
Third  mountain  sand,  and  the  Berea  Grit  of 
Ohio  ;  selected  sets  of  oil  well  records  ;  Bul- 
lion ;  John  Smith  well ;  Mountain  sands  un- 
reliable guides  ;  reliability  of  good  records ; 
the  red  rocks  ;  Amber  oil  and  Heavy  oil  hori- 
zons,    79  to  90 

Chapter  8.  The  Pithole  Grit,  its  identity  with  the 

Berea  Grit  of  Ohio  discussed, 91  to  97 

Chapter  9.  The  two  Oil  Belts,  Upper  and  Lower, 
or  Northern  and  Southern  ;  the  Six  Petrolia 
wells, 97  to  104 

Chapter  10.  Series  of  wells  from  St.  Joe  to  Taren- 

tum  ;  from  Petrolia  to  Cherry  run,  ....  105  to  111 

Chapter  11.  Series  of  wells  from  Oil  City  to 

Clarion, Ill  to  114 

Chapter  12.  Series  of  wells  from  Pittsburgh, 

north  to  Clarion  county, 115  to  119 

Chapter  13.  Contrast  between  the  producing  and 
non-producing  areas  of  the  Oil  Sand  Group. 
Resum£ :  the  Panama  Conglomerate,  Sala- 
manca Conglomerate,  Oil  Sand  Group,  Red 
belt,  Pithole  Grit,  Garland,  Sharon  or  Olean 
Conglomerate,  Sharon  Coal  Group,  Berea 
Grit  of  Ohio, 119  to  126 

Chapter  14.  The  Yenango  Oil  Group  described, 
with  grouped  sections  of  oil  well  records, 
showing  the  sands,  the  intervals,  and  the  over- 
lying and  underlying  soft-drilling  measures,  127  to  138 

Chapter  15.  The  general  dip  south  westward  of 
the  Venango  Oil  Sand  Group,  based  on  com- 
parative tables  of  levels, 139  to  144 

Chapter  16.  The  Butler-Clarion  oil  belt  maps  and 
profile  ;  oil  production  of  the  belt ;  Cross  or 
Fourth  Sand  Belt,  .  145  to  148 


XX  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOffiT  F.  CARLL. 

Pages. 

Chapter  17.  The  profile  section  from  Lake  Erie 
to  West  Virginia  ;  vertical  section  of  all  the 
known  oil-producing  formations,  with  a  sum- 
mary sketch  of  their  characters  in  thirteen 
groups, 149  to  164 

Chapter  18.  Causes  for  withholding  oil-well  rec- 
ords from  geological  inspection  ;  their  abund- 
ance ;  small  percentage  of  good  recording ; 
drilling  by  contract ;  record-circular  issued 
by  the  Survey ;  value  of  returns  ;  utility  of 
well  records  not  appreciated ;  secrecy  ob- 
served about  trial  wells ;  interest  of  the  driller 
in  doctoring  the  record  ;  of  the  landowner ; 
traditional  sentiment  that  dry  wells  are  not 
deep  enough  ;  publicity  opposed  to  business 
policy  ;  the  geologist's  difficulties ;  obliga- 
tions of  the  Survey  for  good  records ;  plan 
adopted  to  secure  a  number  of  them,  .  .  .  165  to  174 

Chapter  19.  Bad  well  records  the  true  cause  of 
the  confusion  in  the  popular  names  and  posi- 
tions of  the  oil-rocks  ;  how  to  secure  reliable 
records ;  the  driller' s  record  defective  ;  rock 
distinctions  disregarded  ;  careless  numbering 
of  the  sands ;  local  arrangements  of  the 
sands  ;  true  arrangement ;  variability  ;  Oil 
creek  arrangement ;  sections  at  Tidioute  and 
Pleasantville ;  measurements  made  by  the 
Survey ;  the  various  methods  of  measure- 
ment described ;  the  various  difficulties  en- 
countered in  measuring  one  well ;  difficulties 
in  measuring  a  group  of  wells  at  once  ;  kind- 
ness of  drillers  and  owners, 175  to  188 

Chapter  20.  Six  wells  at  Petrolia  accurately 
measured  by  the  Survey,  and  the  results ; 
rate  of  drilling  shown  in  diagram  ;  time  rack 
described, 189  to  212 

Chapter  21.  Three  wells  at  Edenburg  accurately 

measured  by  the  Survey,  and  the  results,  .  213  to  223 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS.  III.  Xxi 

Pages. 

Chapter  22.  One  well  in  McKean  county  accu- 
rately measured  by  the  Survey,  and  the  re- 
sults,  ". 224  to  231 

Chapter  23.  The  structure  of  the  Venango  Oil 
Sands  reasoned  out  theoretically  ;  sediments  ; 
vehicles  of  transportation ;  fluviatile  and 
oceanic  currents ;  a  new  epoch  commenced 
with  the  Yenango  Oil  Sand  group  ;  elevation 
of  sea  bottom ;  shifting  of  old  shore  lines ; 
alternations  of  sea  level ;  structural  varia- 
tions,   232  to  242 

Chapter  24.  Crevices  in  the  sandrock  not  essen- 
tial to  paying  wells  ;  ere  vice- searchers  ;  no 
communication  between  an  upper  and  a  lower 
sand  ;  crevices  more  numerous  in  the  upper 
sands  ;  porous  sand  the  reservoir  of  oil  and 
channel  of  oil-flow ;  calculation  of  the  rate 
of  flow  ;  no  oil  lakes  ;  shale  or  slush  oil  above 
the  Warren  and  Bradford  oil  sands,  ....  243  to  255 

Chapter  25.  Flooded  territory ;  invasion  of  water ; 
pools  ;  circulation  of  oil  through  the  rock  ; 
first  wells  have  the  longest  life  ;  examples  ; 
exhaustion  of  different  districts  ;  new  eras 
in  oil-production  ;  pumping  ;  casing  ;  tempo- 
rary flooding;  magnified  picture  of  an  oil 
sand  in  section, 256  to  269 

Chapter  26.  The  origin  of  petroleum,  a  chapter 
of  queries ;  various  grades  of  petroleum ; 
organic  matter ;  facts  of  sedimentation ;  gen- 
esis from  gas ;  relation  of  oil  to  tide-level ; 
the  deepest  holes  all  dry, 270  to  284 

Chapter  27.  Oil  well  machinery ;  derrick ;  run- 
ning gear,  rig-iron,  boiler,  engine,  &c.,  .  .  285  to  297 

Chapter  28.  Drilling-tools  ;  stringing  them  in  the 

derrick ;  spudding  and  drilling, 298  to  310 


XXii  III.      REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Pages. 

Chapter  29.  Different  methods  in  use  at  different 
stages  of  oil  history  from  1861  to  1878 ;  the 
well  of  1861 ;  the  well  of  1868 ;  the  well  of 
1878  ;  geological  sections  of  the  oil-ground  ; 
explanations  of  figures ;  cost  of  a  Bradford 
well  in  1878  ;  torpedoes  and  their  history,  .  311  to  329 

Chapter  30.  The  Glacial  Drift ;  drainage  of  the 
Chautauqua  basin  ;  tables  showing  the  slope 
of  the  old  river  floor, 320  to  338 

Chapter  31.  The  northern  pre-glacial  outlets ; 
map  of  the  Steamburg  triangle ;  depth  of  the 
Drift ;  Canadaga  lake ;  three  classes  of  val- 
leys ;  the  drainage  of  Tionesta  creek  valley ; 
drainage  maps  ;  Allegheny  river  drainage,  .  339  to  355 

Chapter  32.  The  Conneaut  northern  pre-glacial 
outlet;  French  creek;  Oil  creek;  depth  of 
Drift, 356  to  - 

Chapter  33.  Excavation  of  Lake  Erie ;  grand 
movement  of  northern  ice  westward  through 
low  divides  in  Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Illinois; 
glaciers, 367  to  376 

Chapter  34.  The  Canadian  mer-de-glace  and  the 
Appalachean  mer-de-glace ;  their  encounter 
and  movement  westward ;  northern  Drift  and 
local  or  southern  Drift  to  be  distinguished ; 
local  erosion  illustrated  by  examples  ;  local 
deposits  ;  eddy- hills ;  terraces, 377  to  397 

Chapter  35.  Well  records  not  before  published,   397  to  420 

Chapter  36.  Gravel  pit  oil  at  Titusville;  Grey's 

well  and  others  in  Ohio, 421  to  432 

Chapter  37.  Building  stone  quarry  notes  in  Ohio  ; 
sections  at  Oil  City,  Franklin,  and  Cran- 
berry, in  Pennsylvania, 433  to  439 

Index  A,  to  the  names  of  persons  and  places  re- 
ferred to  pages, 441  to  461 

Index  B,  to  subjects  mentioned  or  discussed,  re- 
ferred to  sections  (§§), 461  to  482 


ILLUSTKATIONS.  III.  xxill 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


(In  the  Text.) 

Page. 

Vertical  section  above  Garland  station,  §  74, 31 

"  "  at  Johnson's  Mill,  §85, 31 

Sections  at  coal  banks,  in  Crawford  county,  §  130,  .  .  47 
Sketch-map  of  location  of  wells,  the  sections  of  which 

are  given  in  Plates  IV  to  VII,  XII, 80 

Sketch-map  of  the  Red  belt  area  in  Penn'a  and  Ohio,  .  92 
Geographical  diagrams  of  the  six  Petrolia  wells,  .  .  99,101 

Vertical  diagrams  of  the  same, 103 

Grouped  vertical  sections  40  to  67,  .  .  .  .  129, 131, 133, 135 

"  "  "  68  to  73, 178, 179 

Sketch-map  of  the  positions  of  the  six  Petrolia  wells,  .  191 
Lithograph  of  Specimen  rack, .  .  bound  in  between  212,  213 

Magnified  section  of  an  oil-sand,  267 

Picture  of  an  oil-well  steam  boiler, 289 

"  of  an  oil-well  pumping  engine,  293 

Sketch-map  of  the  Steamburg  triangle, 341 

Sections  of  the  Northern  Drift  at  Lakes  Cassadaga  and 

Conneaut, 364 

Vertical  sections  at  Oil  City  and  Cranberry, 439 


(In  the  Atlas.) 

Sheet. 

Map  of  north-western  Pennsylvania,  showing  the  out- 
lines of  the  present  or  post-glacial  water  basins,  .    .      1 
Map  of  the  same,  showing  the  pre-glacial  water  basins,     2 
Profile  section  from  Meadville  south-westward,  .    .    .    .  3  A 
Contoured  map  of  Spring  creek-Brokenstraw  junction,  3  B 

Group  of  oil-well  sections,  Figs.    1  to  12, 4 

"  "  "         Figs.  13  to  21, 5 

"  "  "          Figs.  22  to  30, 6 

"  "  "         Figs.  31  to  39, 7 

Diagram  map  and  section :  dip  of  Venango  Third  Sand,      8 


III.   EEPOET  OF  PEOGEESS.   JOHN  F.  CAELL. 

Sheet. 
Map  of  Butler,  Armstrong,  and  Clarion  Oil-Field  (two 

sheets), 9 

Geological  section  from  Black  Rock,  in  New  York  State, 

to  Dunkard  creek,  Greene  county,  Pa., 10 

Vertical  section  from  the  Upper  Barren  Coal  measures 

down  to  the  Corniferous  limestone, 11 

Group  of  oil-well  sections,  Figs.  74  to  83, 12 

Mechanical  drawing  of  Derrick  and  Rig, 13 

Sectional  drawings  of  the  oil  wells  of  1861,  1868,  1878,  .  14 
Mechanical  drawings  of  cross  sections  of  the  same,    14  Ms 
Three  oil-well  sections  to  illustrate  the  progressive  deep- 
ening of  the  borings,  from  1861  to  1878, 15 

Detailed  drawings  of  tools  used  in  drilling, 16 

Diagram  of  daily  rate  of  drilling  six  Petrolia  wells,     .  17 

Contoured  Map  of  the  vicinity  of  Franklin, 18 

Contoured  Map  of  the  vicinity  of  Titusville, 19 

Geological  colored  map  of  Venango  county, 20 


REPORT 

III. 

ON"  THE  PROGRESS  OF  THE  SURVEY 

IN   THK 

OIL   REG-IONS 

OP 

WARREN,  VENANGO,  BUTLER  AND  CLARION  COUNTIES 

FROM  1875  TO  1879. 


CHAPTER  I.* 

The  topography  and  drainage  of  the  country  lying  between 
the  northern  outcrop  belt  of  the  Garland  conglomerate 
and  the  Lake  Erie  divide,  in  Warren  and  Crawford 
counties. 

§  1.  A  line  drawn  from  Sngar  Grove  in  Warren  county  to 
Jamestown  in  Mercer  county  represents  approximately  the 
northwestern  margin  of  the  outcropping  Garland  conglom- 
erate as  instrumentally  traced  from  New  York  to  Ohio  in 
the  second  year  of  the  survey,  1875. 

§  2.  The  bearing  of  this  line  is  about  S.  58°  W.,  N.  58°  E. 
being  parallel  with  the  average  trend  of  the  shore  of  Lake 
Erie  and  distant  from  it  say  30  miles.  (See  map  Plate  I.) 

§  3.  The  outcrop  of  the  Garland  conglomerate,  thus  in- 
dicated, is,  however,  by  no  means  an  unbroken  escarpment ; 

*  Report  of  the  work  done  in  1875. 


2  III.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

but  a  range  of  hilltops  or  outliers,  separated  by  numerous 
shallow  vales,  through  which  streams  flow  towards  the  south; 
all  of  them  being  tributaries  of  the  Ohio  river  ;  and  some 
of  them  having  their  head-springs  within  8  or  10  miles  of 
Lake  Erie,  on  the  crest  of  the  "great  divide"  or  water-shed, 
the  gently  sloping  southern  side  of  which  is  drained  into 
the  gulf  of  Mexico,  while  its  steep  northern  slope  is  drained 
into  the  gulf  of  St.  Lawrence. 

§  4.  The  original  gaps  in  the  ranges  of  conglomerate 
capped  hills  were  gradually,  in  course  of  time,  deepened 
and  widened  into  valleys  between  elevated  upland  ridges  ; 
and  these  ridges  in  their  turn  were  worn  down  and  cut/ 
through  sideways,  more  or  less,  by  the  general  rain- fall  and 
smaller  lateral  streams,  until  now  only  an  occasional  de- 
tached outlier  of  the  Garland  conglomerate  (or  sandstone) 
remains  on  the  crowns  of  the  highest  hills  along  the  line 
above  referred  to. 

§5.  Pike's  ridge,  an  outlier  of  this  kind,  the  most 
northwesterly  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  may  be  found 
about  2  miles  from  Wrightsville  and  4  miles  from  Sugar 
Grove  in  Warren  county,  on  the  divide  between  Little 
Brokenstraw  and  StilhvUter  creeks. 

§  6.  To  the  north  and  west,  the  Garland  conglomerate, 
with  all  the  rocks  above  it  in  the  series,  has  been  removed 
by  the  general  erosion  of  the  country,  which,  deprived  of 
its  protection,  has  been  carved  into  broad  valleys  and  grace- 
fully rounded  hills  and  ridges  of  the  softer  and  more  homo- 
geneous measures  below  it.  The  contrast  is  very  striking 
to  the  sharp  and  rugged  topography  of  all  the  country  to 
the  southeast,  where  most  of  the  higher  eminences  are  still 
protected  from  erosion  by  a  considerable  capping  of  the 
massive,  current-bedded,  micaceous  sandrock  deposits,  un- 
derlying the  Coal  measures. 

§  7.  At  the  Olean  Rock  City,  in  Cattaraugus  county,  N. 
Y.  is  found  the  next  prominent  exposure  of  the  Garland 
conglomerate  to  the  north  and  east  of  the  one  last  men- 
tioned. It  bears  N.  80°  E.  from  Pike's  ridge,  distant  47 
miles,  and  near  the  Pennsylvania  State  line,  about  6  miles 
southwest  of  Olean. 


TOPOGRAPHY  AXD  DRAINAGE.  III.  3 

§  8.  If  now  we  start  at  the  Olean  Rock  City  and  glance 
southwesterly  along  the  line  indicated  on  the  map  (Plate  I) 
first  to  Sugar  Grove,  and  thence  to  Jamestown,  we  notice 
that  the  principal  streams  cutting  the  line  come  in  the  fol- 
lowing order :  I.  Tunangwant  creek,  flowing  north  into  the 
Allegheny  ;  2.  the  Allegheny  river,  flowing  south  ;  3.  Cone- 
wango  creek,  delivering  the  waters  of  Chautauqua  and  Cas- 
sadaga  lakes  southward  into  the  Allegheny  ;  4.  Little  Brok- 
enstraw  creek  ;  5.  Blue  Eye  run  ;  6.  Big  Brokenstraw  creek ; 
7.  Oil  creek,  with  two  branches ;  8.  French  creek ;  9.  the 
Conneaut  outlet ;  10.  Crooked  creek,  and  11,  the  Shenango 
river,  all  of  them  flowing  south. 

§  9.  More  or  less  of  the  Garland  conglomerate  (or  sand- 
stone) remains  in  place  along  the  line,  on  all  of  the  ridges 
which  intervene  between  these  streams ;  and  in  some  in- 
stances (as  in  the  vicinity  of  Meadville)  spurs  of  hills 
capped  with  it  extend  still  further  north.  The  actual  out- 
crop therefore,  if  followed  along  its  windings,  would  make  a 
very  irregular  line  upon  the  map  ;  while  several  isolated 
patches  exist  to  the  north  of  the  general  strike-line  com- 
pletely cut  off  from  the  main  body  by  lateral  streams  run- 
ning nearly  at  right  angles  to  the  leading  arteries  of  drain- 
age. 

Spring  cresJc  in  Warren  county,  and  Hyde  (or  Little  Oil) 
creek,  in  Crawford  county,  are  lateral  streams  of  this  char- 
acter. The  crown  of  the  southerly  water-shed  of  these  two 
streams  trends  in  nearly  a  due  southwest  course  from  Big 
Brokenstraw  to  Oil  creek,  and  is  virtually  an  unbroken 
ridge  capped  with  the  Garland  conglomerate ;  while  over 
all  the  country  to  the  northwest  the  rock  lies  only  in  de- 
tached masses  on  isolated  knobs  of  the  spur-ridges. 

§  ]  0.  Valley  features.  —To  repeat  what  was  said  above, 
the  configuration  of  the  country  and  the  character  of  the 
streams  north  of  the  main  outcrop  line  of  the  Garland  con- 
glomerate are  in  striking  contrast  with  those  south  of  it. 
To  the  north,  the  erosion  of  ages,  after  accomplishing  the 
complete  destruction  of  the  sandstone,  has  attacked  the 
underlying  shales,  producing  innumerable  hills  rounded 
to  a  graceful  contour  ;  the  valleys  are  broad,  with  bottom 


4  III.  JJKPOKT  OF  PROttKESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

lands  through  which  the  sluggish  streams  sweep  in  curves 
and  loops  and  flow  almost  entirely  between  banks  composed 
of  lacustrine  or  fluviatile  re-worked  Drift.  Scarcely  an  ex- 
posure of  bed-rock  can  be  seen  in  all  their  meanders. 

To  the  south,  on  the  contrary,  the  hilltops  protected  by 
massive  sandrock  are  angular  and  rugged  ;  the  valleys  are 
narrow  ;  the  streams  are  hemmed  in  between  high  and  pre- 
cipitous bluffs  ;  and  flow  with  considerable  speed  and  di- 
rectness through  rocky  channels,  holding  comparatively 
small  accumulations  of  re-worked  Drift. 

§  11.  Water  basins. — On  a  further  examination  of  the 
hydrography  of  the  region,  the  water-courses  draining 
these  trenched  summit  plateaux  or  basins  arrange  them- 
selves naturally  into  four  groups,  the  members  of  each 
group  converging  toward  a  common  outlet,  deeply  eroded 
through  the  sandstones  and  shales  at  the  south ;  but  the 
waters  of  all  four  groups  eventually  commingle  in  the  Ohio 
river  at  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Beaver,  below  Pittsburgh. 

These  groups  of  streams,  'or  water-trees,  are  designated 
upon  the  map  (Plate  I)  by  the  following  names  : 
Chautauqua. 
Oil  Creek. 
Conneaut. 
Pymatuning. 

§  12.  The  Chautauqua  water  basin. — All  the  drainage 
of  the  Chautauqua  group,  gathered  from  the  numerous 
headwater  branches  of  the  Allegheny,  from  the  Conewango 
and  its  lake  feeders,  and  from  the  Big  Brokenstraw  and  its 
affluents,  flows  down  the  Allegheny  river  in  one  body  after 
passing  Irvineton,  which  is  situated  near  the  centre  of  War- 
ren county. 

Near  Thompson's  station,  six  miles  below  Irvineton, 
there  appears  to  be  a  slight  anticlinal  crossing  the  river ; 
but  just  where  exactly  located  and  of  how  much  importance 
it  would  be  difficult  to  determine  without  an  extensive  in- 
strumental survey.  Here  the  southerly  rim  of  the  Chau- 
tauqua water  basin  is  cut  by  the  Allegheny  river  valley. 

Following  the  rim  or  dividing  ridge  aronnd,  it  may  be 
seen  on  the  map  to,  commence  a  little  west  of  the  head  of 


TOPOGRAPHY  AND  DRAINAGE.  III.  5 

Chautauqua  lake ;  thence,  southward,  passing  near  Corry 
in  Erie  county,  to  Thompson's  station  in  Warren  county  ; 
to  Kane  in  McKean  county  ;  to  Keating  Summit  in  Potter 
county  ;  and  sweeping  around  by  the  east  of  Coudersport, 
and  the  head  of  the  Allegheny  river,  to  the  noted  "Conti- 
tinental  summit"  near  Raymond's  Corners  in  Potter 
county.* 

The  outlet  of  this  group  of  streams,  at  Tidioute,  drains  a 
larger  area  than  that  of  all  the  other  three  groups  com- 
bined. 

§  13.  The  Oil  Creek  water  basin  is  comparatively  small^in- 
cluding  only  Oil  Creek  and  its  branches.  Its  waters  enter  the 
deep  cut  through  the  lower  carboniferous  sandstones  a  short 
distance  below  Titusville,  and  after  following  a  tortuous 
course  for  seventeen  miles,  along  a  narrow  bed  hemmed  in 
by  high  walls  on  either  side,  commingle  with  those  of  the 
Allegheny  river  at  Oil  City. 

§  14.  The  Conneaut  water  basin  includes  French  creek 
and  its  branches,  some  of  them  streams  of  considerable  im- 
portance. It  collects  its  water  from  the  Lake  Erie  divide, 
the  westerly  rim  of  the  Chautauqua  basin,  and  the  northerly 
and  westerly  sides  of  the  Oil  creek  basin,  and  delivers  it 
through  French  creek  into  the  Allegheny  river  at  Franklin. 

§  15.  The  Pymatuning  water  basin.— The  area  above 
Greenville  drained  by  this  group  is  inconsiderable  in  ex- 
tent, but  the  physical  features  of  the  basin  are  worthy  of 
note.  It  includes  the  Pymatuning  swamp  with  its  sev- 
eral small  feeders  and  two  outlets  —  the  Shenango  and 
Crooked  creek.  These  outlets  come  together  at  Greenville 
in  Mercer  count}",  and,  re-inforced  lower  down  by  the  Py- 
matuning from  the  west,  the  Neshannock  from  the  east  and 
the  Mahoning  from  the  west,  from  the  Big  Beaver  river 
which  enters  the  Ohio  about  30  miles  below  Pittsburgh. 

Pymatuning  swamp  lies  only  about  35  feet  below  Con- 
neaut lake,  and  is  separated  form  it  by  a  low  and  narrow 

*  Where  the  rainfall  on  a  fifty  acre  tract  is  carried  off  in  one  direction 
through  the  Geiiesee  river  into  Lake  Ontario  and  the  St.  Lawrence,  in  another 
through  the  Allegheny,  &c.,  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  in  still  another 
through  Pine  creek  and  the  Susquehanna  river  into  Chesapeake  bay. 


6  III.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOITX  F.   CARLL. 

divide.*  At  the  point  where  the  ol'd  Beaver  canal  (taking 
its  water-supply  from  the  summit  reservoir  (Conneaut  lake) 
passed  through  this  divide  ;  but  a  short  cut  about  25  feet  in 
depth,  and  entirely  in  drift,  was  required.  The  amount  of 
Drift  piled  in  here,  and  the  configuration  of  the  hills  on 
either  side,  make  it  seem  not  at  all  improbable  that  the  Py- 
matuning  waters  once  flowed  into  the  Conneaut  basin. 

Comparative  levels  of  the  Water  Basins. 

§  16.  To  aid  in  obtaining  a  comprehensive  idea  of  the  rel- 
ative levels  of  these  groups  of  drainage  channels,  let  us 
now  imagine  the  Allegheny  river  at  Thompson's  station, 
where  the  conglomerate-capped  hills  rise  abruptly  between 
six  and  seven  hundred  feet  above  the  stream,  to  be  checked 
by  an  obstruction  raised  in  the  valley  200  feet  above  the 
present  surface  of  the  water.  This  dam,  although  slight  as 
compared  with  the  hilltops,  would  throw  back  the  water  of 
the  Allegheny  river  to  the  north,  and  flood  the  wide  valleys 
of  all  its  principal  tributary  streams.  It  would  raise  the 
surface  of  Chautauqua  lake  about  31  feet  above  its  present 
level,  and  Cassadaga  lake  25  feet.  It  would  cause  slack- 
water  to  extend  up  the  Allegheny  and  its  branches  beyond 
the  New  York  State  line  ;  flood  the  Conewango  valley  and 
a  large  part  of  the  country  between  Warren  and  Chautau- 
qua and  Cassadaga  lakes,  and  fill  the  trough  of  the  Broken- 
straw  to  a  point  above  Garland. 

Let  us  in  like  manner  suppose  Oil  creek  dammed  to  the 

*  To  the  southwest  of  Conneaut  lake  and  swamp,  just  under  the  comb  of 
the  ridge,  between  30  and  40  feet  lower  in  level,  is  to  be  found  the  great  Pyma- 
tuning  swamp.  This  marsh  is  very  extensive,  as  its  western  boundaries  lie 
some  distance  within  the  State  of  Ohio.  The  river  Shenango  finds  its  source 
in  this  swamp,  a  river  which  runs  in  a  southerly  direction  until  it  meets  the 
Neshannock,  in  Lawrence  county,  at  New  Castle,  and  thus  forms  the  Beaver 
river,  which  falls  into  the  Ohio  about  thirty  miles  below  Pittsburg.  The  area 
of  the  swamp,  as  near  as  could  be  ascertained  by  this  cursory  survey-,  is  nine 
thousand  acres.  I  believe  that  all  the  water  which  flows  from  it  contributes 
to  the  Shenango.  A  small  bay  on  its  eastern  extremity,  is  cut  off  by  the  Erie 
extension  canal,  and  forms  a  subsidiary  reservoir  for  that  work  at  Hartstown  ; 
out  of  this  end  of  the  swamp  flows  Crooked  creek,  %vhich  joins  the  Shenango 
about  four  miles  above  West  Greenville — Surveys  of  the  Pymatuning  and 
Conneaut  swamps,  by  Col.  Jos.  Worrall,  C.  E.,  Under  the  joint  resolution 
of  February  28,  1868. 


TOPOGRAPHY  AND  DRAINAGE.          III.  7 

height  of  200  feet  where  it  enters  the  highlands  just  below 
Titusville.  The  side  walls  here  rise  about  400  feet  above  the 
stream.  This  would  flood  all  the  low  country  along  Oil 
creek  nearly  up  to  Oil  lake  and  form  a  sheet  of  water  two 
or  three  miles  in  width  in  some  places.  The  valley  of  East 
Oil  creek  would  also  be  filled  as  far  up  as  Colorado,  and 
Caldwell  creek  as  far  as  to  Pleasant  valley. 

An  obstruction  of  100  feet  on  French  creek  between  Frank- 
lin and  the  mouth  of  Sugar  creek,  would  cover  the  Con- 
neaut  marsh,  and  the  broad  valley  of  French  creek  to  Mead- 
ville,  thus  enlarging  the  boundaries  of  Conneaut  lake  and 
forming  a  sheet  of  water  of  no  mean  dimensions. 

An  obstruction  100  feet  high  in  the  Shenango  river  at 
West  Greenville  would  form  a  lake  with  a  large  island  in  the 
center,  extending  up  both  branches  of  the  Shenango,  and 
embracing  within  its  outlines  the  great  Pymatuning  swamp. 

The  surface  of  the  Chautauqua  basin  were  it  filled  with 
water  as  we  have  imagined  it  to  be  would  lie  at  an  elevation 
above  the  ocean  of  about  1330  feet ;  the  Oil  creek  basin, 
1360  feet ;  the  Conneaut  basin,  1080  feet ;  the  Pymatun- 
ing basin,  1070  feet. 

§  17.  Into  these  four  basins  all  the  drainage  between  the 
Lake  Erie  divide  and  the  almost  continuous  range  of  out- 
cropping Garland  conglomerate  now  centers ;  and  if  they 
were  flooded,  as  supposed,  the  inflowing  streams  from  the 
north  and  the  dividing  ridges,  would  simply  be  feeders  to 
these  long,  narrow,  irregularly  outlined  lakes  ;  and  the  sur- 
plus accumulations  of  water  from  all  this  country,  would 
pass  out,  as  they  pass  now,  only  through  the  four  gaps  in 
the  conglomerate  first  indicated. 

§  18.  Going  still  further  in  this  line  of  illustration,  let  us 
now  compare  these  four  imaginary  sheets  of  water  and  note 
the  probable  effects  of  a  change  in  their  respective  levels. 

By  increasing  the  obstruction  in  the  Allegheny  river  at 
Thompson's  station  10  feet,  the  Chautauqua  basin  would 
overflow  to  the  north  through  Cassadaga  lake  into  Cana- 
daway  creek  and  thence  to  Lake  Erie. 

By  raising  the  Oil  creek  obstruction  10  feet,  the  Oil  creek 
basin  would  overflow  to  the  northwest,  through  the  west 


8  III.      REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

branch  of  Oil  creek  into  Muddy  creek  and  thence  into 
French  creek. 

By  raising  the  French  creek  obstruction  10  feet,  the  Con- 
neaut  basin  would  oner/low  to  the  west  into  the  Pymatun- 
ing  basin,  thus  converging  all  the  waters  from  the  Oil  creek, 
Conneaut  and  Pymatuning  basins  into  the  Shenango  river. 

But  if  we  should  now  raise  the  SJienango  dam  30  feet, 
bringing  it  up  to  1100  feet  above  tide,  and  build  up  the 
French  creek  obstruction  to  the  same  level,  we  should  prob- 
ably check  the  southern  flow  of  water  from  all  this  area, 
and  a  new  channel  would  be  opened  for  it  at  the  north,  from 
Conneaut  lake  into  Conneaut  creek  and  thence  into  Lake 
Erie. 

§  19.  We  must  bear  in  mind  that  the  southern  boundary 
of  these  basins  is  a  highland  capped  with  several  hundred 
feet  of  the  coarse  sandy  measures  outcropingfrom  beneath 
the  coal  fields  of  the  south.  At  Thompson's  gap  the  aver- 
age top  of  the  ridge  may  be  put  at  about  1800  feet  above 
tide  ;  at  Oil  creek  about  1600  feet ;  at  French  creek  about 
1400  feet ;  and  at  the  SJienango  about  1200  feet. 

§  20.  Thompson's  gap. — We  have  seen  that  an  obstruc- 
tion in  the  Thompson's  station  cut,  if  raised  to  an  elevation 
of  1340  feet  above  tide,  would  stop  the  passage  of  water  at 
this  point  and  open  a  new  outlet  for  the  drainage  of  the 
Chautauqua  basin  through  Cassadaga  lake  into  Lake  Erie. 
By  what  agency,  then,  and  when,  was  this  gap  (at  Thomp- 
sons) opened ;  since  whatever  it  was  that  opened  it  must 
have  commenced  its  work  in  the  upper  rocks  at  an  elevation 
of  1800  feet  at  least — 460  feet  above  the  place  where  the 
water  now  would  have  a  free  outlet  to  the  north  ? 

§  21.  Oil  creek  gap. — So  too  on  Oil  creek,  when  the  water 
is  stopped,  and  thrown  back  until  it  finds  an  outlet  to  the 
north,  by  an  obstruction  1370  feet  above  tide,  230  feet  of  the 
upper  part  of  the  chasm  remains  as  a  witness  of  the  work 
of  other  agencies  than  the  waters  of  the  present  basin. 

§  22.  French  creek  gap. — The  French  creek  gap  also  pre- 
sents similar  features.  If  its  channel  were  filled  to  a  suf- 
ficient height  (1090  feet  above  tide)  to  cause  the  Conneaut 
basin  to  deliver  to  the  west,  there  would  still  be  an  erosion 


TOPOGRAPHY  AXD  DRAINAGE.          III.  9 

of  310  feet  of  the  upper  part  of  the  old  gap  in  the  hills  to 
be  accounted  for. 

§  23.  Date  of  the  formation  of  the  gaps. — It  appears 
therefore  quite  certain  from  the  above  presentation  of  the 
case  that  these  southern  outlets  through  this  escarpment  of 
massive  conglomerates  and  sandstones,  were  opened  long 
anterior  to  the  time  when  the  drainage  of  this  area  began 
to  be  influenced  by  its  present  topography,  and  before  the 
waters  were  confined  within  the  rims  of  the  respective 
basins  as  we  now  find  them.  Otherwise  the  overflowing 
waters  could  not  have  cut  through  several  hundred  feet  of 
sandstones  and  shales  on  the  south,  lying  at  a  higher  level 
than  their  surface ;  but  would  have  found  a  more  ready 
outlet  and  a  more  rapid  delivery  through  the  softer  meas- 
ures of  the  north  and  west — the  Chautauqua,  through  Cas- 
sadaga  lake  into  Lake  Erie — the  Oil  creek  through  Muddy 
creek  into  the  Conneaut — the  Conneaut  into  the  Pymatun- 
ing — and  the  three  latter  (combined)  into  the  low  levels  of 
the  Shenango  river  country. 

§  24.  The  agency  glacial. — The  peculiar  arrangement  of 
these  basins  between  the  Lake  Erie  divide  on  the  north  and 
outcropping  conglomerates  on  the  south ;  the  positions  of 
their  several  outlets,  which  singularly  enough  are  cut  down 
through  the  highest  and  hardest  portions  of  their  inclosing 
barriers — the  highest  reservoir  having  cut  the  deepest  out- 
let ;  and  the  immense  amount  of  northern  drift,  accompa- 
nied by  erratic  bowlders,  spread  over  nearly  all  this  sec- 
tion— seem  to  point  clearly  to  the  inference  that  these 
features  are  not  due  to  the  action  of  aqueous  and  atmos- 
pheric erosion  alone,  but  that  the  general  outlines  of  the 
present  topography  were  "carved  out  in  the  rough"  prior 
to  and  during  the  glacial  epoch,  and  afterwards  modified 
and  smoothed  down  by  the  gradually  receding  waters  as  the 
ice  disappeared. 

§  25.  No  continental  rock  "barrier. — We  can  hardly  im- 
agine that  the  levels  of  the  country  between  the  Cincinnati 
anticlinal  and  the  Chautauqua  highlands  were  ever  so  ad- 
justed as  to  hold  a  fixed  body  of  water  to  the  north  at  the 
high  elevation  of  the  Chautauqua  basin ;  and  if  they  were 


10  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

so  adjusted,  then,  when  the  first  outlet  opened  to  the  south, 
down  the  dip  of  the  strata,  wherever  that  outlet  might  be, 
the  erosion  would  be  so  rapid  that  only  one  waste  weir  would 
be  required.  This  outlet,  deepening,  widening  and  lowering 
the  surface  of  the  water  to  the  north,  would  be  likely  to  leave 
in  the  basin  behind  (as  the  waters  subsided  by  drainage)  a 
system  of  streams  all  converging  towards  the  common  outlet. 
But  instead  of  one  basin  of  this  description  we  have  shown 
that  there  are  four  ;  each  one  having  an  independent  outlet, 
cut  down  deeply  through  ponderous  rocks  lying  high 
above  the  average  level  of  the  country  drained  by  it. 

§  26.  JVo  general  submergence. — Neither  are  we  prepared 
to  accept  the  hypothesis  of  submergence  below  sea  level 
to  account  for  the  superficial  deposits  and  the  facial  pecu- 
liarities of  this  section.  For  in  that  case,  when  the  land 
again  emerged,  and  drainage  commenced  in  any  direction, 
we  should  have  the  same  features  as  those  above  referred  to 
repeated.  Or,  if  an  isolated  basin  remained  unemptied,  it 
would  overflow  and  open  an  outlet  for  itself  at  the  lowest 
point  in  its  barrier,  and  not  through  sandstone  cliffs  rising 
hundreds  of  feet  above  its  surface. 

The  orographic  features  of  the  district  stand  out  boldly 
as  witnesses  of  a  fact  which  will  hardly  be  questioned  by 
any  one  after  an  examination  of  the  country.  They  offer 
the  best  of  evidence  in  themselves  that  they  are  not  the 
results  of  the  action  of  water  alone,  but  of  ice  and  water 
combined.  In  just  what  way  the  erosion  was  accomplished  ; 
what  its  status  was  at  the  beginning  of  the  glacial  epoch  ; 
and  what  the  measure  of  its  progress  has  been  during  and 
since  that  time,  we  can  as  yet  only  surmise. 


CHAPTER  II.* 

The  GARLAND  (Olean\  or  Sharon^)  CONGLOMERATE  and 
SUB-GARLAND  (Sub-Olean-\-  or  Shenangoty  SANDSTONE 
placed  and  traced. 

a.  Leveled  Line  of  Survey. 

§  27.  In  selecting  a  route  over  which  to  run  a  spirit  level 
line  across  northwestern  Pennsylvania  in  1875,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  connectedly  tracing  the  several  outcrops  of  Garland 
conglomerate,  that  they  might  thus  be  identified  with  co- 
temporaneous  rocks  in  the  State  of  New  York  on  the  one 
side  and  in  the  State  of  Ohio  on  the  other,  a  due  consider- 
ation of  the  amount  of  time  that  could  be  appropriated  to 
the  undertaking  without  prejudice  to  interests  of  equal  im- 
portance in  other  parts  of  the  oil  district  made  the  adop- 
tion of  a  route  imperative  which  offered  fewest  obstacles 
to  the  speedy  execution  of  the  work. 

In  addition  to  the  levels,  courses  and  distances  also 
were  to  be  taken,  in  order  that  the  line  might  be  used  as  a 
base  for  future  operations  if  occasion  required.  It  was 
therefore  desirable  to  follow  some  highway;  and,  under 
these  circumstances,  the  choice  naturally  fell  to  the  "  State 
road"  commencing  at  Busti,  in  Chautauqua  county,  N.  Y. 
and  running  through  Sugar  Grove  and  West  Spring  creek 
in  Warren  county,  Pa.  ;  Ricemlle,  Meadvillc,  Adamsville, 
and  Jamestown  in  Crawford  county  to  Kinney 's  Corners 
in  Trumbull  county,  Ohio. 

§  28.  Although  the  selected  line  of  survey  does  not  keep 
constantly  upon  the  outcrop  of  the  Garland  conglomerate  it 
is  an  excellent  one  along  which  to  study  the  geology  of  the 

*  Report  of  work  done  in  1875. 

f  Names  assigned  by  Mr.  Ashburner  in  his  Reports  (R,  RR)  on  McKean, 
Cameron,  Elk,  and  Forest  counties. 

{  Names  assigned  by  Mr.  White  in  his  Reports  (QQ,  QQQ,  QQQQ)  on  Law- 
rence, Mercer,  Crawford,  and  Erie  counties. 
( 11  III. ) 


12  III.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

country,  and  it  is  as  direct  a  line  as  any  highway  at  our 
command  between  the  points  named. 

§  29.  Messrs.  F.  A.  Hatch  and  Arthur  Hale,  with  C.  A. 
Bodge  as  rodman,  performed  the  work.  The  distances 
were  measured  with  a  ten  foot  odometer- wheel.  Bearings 
were  taken  by  transit- telescope  and  needle.  Elevations 
were  observed  on  the  vertical  circle  of  the  transit  instru- 
ment, and  reduced  to  ocean  level  by  reference  to  the  data 
given  in  the  profiles  of  the  several  railroads  crossed.* 

§  30.  The  region  traversed  by  this  line  of  survey,  rapidly 
executed  for  a  special  geological  purpose,  affords  ample 
scope  for  the  investigations  of  afield-party  during  an  entire 
season,  even  if  all  the  time  were  devoted  to  a  study  of  its 
Drift  phenomena  alone.  Its  glacial  grooves — its  bowlders 
scattered  at  all  elevations  along  the  hillsides — its  old  water 
channels,  some  of  them  now  filled  to  a  height  of  400  feet 
or  even  more — its  drift-clays  and  lake  beaches — each  and 
all  of  these  deserve  close  and  careful  study,  and  proffer  the 
material  data  for  a  very  interesting  chapter  in  the  geology 
of  the  State. 

§  31.  But  for  the  present,  attention  must  be  chiefly  given 
to  the  more  important  task  of  tracing  the  Garland  con- 
glomerate (the  Second  Mountain  sand  of  the  oil  wells) 
along  its  northerly  outcrop  across  Pennsylvania  ;  identify- 
ing it  with  certain  conglomerate  strata  outcropping  in  New 
York  and  Ohio ;  and  endeavoring  to  fix  its  horizon  defi- 
nitely in  relation  to  the  overlying  coal  measures  and  the 
underlying  oil-bearing  rocks. 

The  following  chapters  will  deal  chiefly  with  these  topics, 
other  matters  being  incidentally  noticed  as  they  were  ob- 
served. 

b.  Place  of  the  Garland  Conglomerate  in  the  Series. 

§  32.  The  term  Garland  conglomerate  is  used'  in  these 
pages  as  a  convenient  local  geographical  name  for  the  low- 

*  As  the  survey  along  this  line  has  not  been  amplified  or  extended  in  any 
direction,  as  it  was  originally  intended  to  be,  only  a  portion  of  their  notes 
have  been  used  in  the  preparation  of  the  contour  map  and  profiles  (Plates  3 
and  3B)  herewith  presented. 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.-  III.   13 

est  member  of  the  Carboniferous  Conglomerate  series  in 
this  part  of  the  State. 

It  is  apparently  identical  with  the  Olean  conglomerate 
in.  McKean  county  ;  with  the  Sharon  conglomerate  in  Mer- 
cer county  ;  with  the  Ohio  conglomerate  in  Ohio  ;  and  with 
the  Second  Mountain  Sand  of  the  oil  wells. 

§  33.  There  has  prevailed  hitherto  great  confusion  of  ideas 
respecting  the  massive  conglomeratic  sand  deposits  under- 
lying the  Productive  coal  measures. 

The  Conglomerate  (XII)  at  Pottsville  in  Schuylkill  county 
(where  it  is  more  than  1000  feet  thick)  has  been  traced 
around  the  Anthracite  coal  basins  and  along  the  Allegheny 
mountain  to  the  Maryland  State  line,  without  much  diffi- 
culty ;  and  it  has  been  recognized  as  a  whole,  throughout 
western  Pennsylvania,  wherever  it  appears  upon  the  anti- 
clinals,  in  gorges,  and  along  the  sides  of  valleys.  But  it  is 
as  thin  in  the  west  as  it  is  thick  in  the  east ;  and  the  Mauch 
Chunk  red  shales  (XI)  which  underlie  it,  and  measure  more 
than  3000  feet  in  thickness  east  of  the  Susquehanna  river, 
and  more  than  1000  feet  on  the  upper  Juniata  river,  dwin- 
dle to  100  feet  in  Clinton  county,  and  almost  disappear  on 
the  Allegheny  river  and  Beaver  river  waters.  This  brings 
almost  into  contact  with  the  base  of  the  Pottsville  conglom- 
erate (XII)'  the  top  of  the  Pocono  sandstone  formation  (X) 
in  western  Pennsylvania;  and  caused  the  heavy  conglomer- 
atic sandstone  strata  in  the  upper  part  of  X  to  be  con- 
founded with  the  conglomeratic  sandstones  of  XII. 
•  The  Garland  conglomerate  in  Warren  county,  the  Olean 
conglomerate  in  McKean  county,  the  Panama  conglomer- 
ate in  Chatauqua  county,  N.  Y.  and  the  Salamanca  con- 
glomerate in  Cattaraugus  county,  N.  Y.  have  been  looked 
upon  not  only  as  local  exhibitions  of  one  and  the  same  de- 
posit, but  as  the  common  representatives  (in  a  thin  form) 
of  the  whole  Pottsville  Conglomerate  formation  (XII)  of 
eastern  and  middle  Pennsylvania. 

§  34.  But  it  will  be  seen  in  the  progress  of  this  report 
that  both  of  these  suppositions  have  been  mistakes,  due  to 
superficial  observations  at  far  distant  and  necessarily  un- 
connected points.  More  elaborate,  connected,  instrumental 


14  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CAHLL. 

surveys  have  placed  clearly  in  light  the  true  state  of  things, 
namely  : 

1.  That  the  Panama  and  Salamanca  conglomerates  in  the 


State  of  J^ew  York  are  different  (and  lower)  formations 
from  the  Olean  and  Garland  conglomerates  in  Pennsylvania. 

2.  That  the  Olean  and  Garland  are  two  outcrops  of  one 
and  the  same  conglomeritic  sandstone  deposit. 

3.  That  this  again  is  a  different  (and  lower)  formation 
from  the  Ilomewood  conglomeritic  sandstone  of  the  Alle- 
gheny river  and  Beaver  river  valleys,  denned  as  No.  XII 
by  the  First  Geological  Survey  of  Pennsylvania  in  183o- 
1841,  but  which  is  only  the  upper  part  of  No.  XII. 

§  35.  Between  the  Homewood  sandstone  of  Butler  county, 
(underlying  the  lowest  bed  of  the  Productive  coal  series, 
and  therefore  the  representative  of  at  least  the  upper  part  of 
the  great  conglomerate)  and  the  Garland  conglomerate  ex- 
ists a  vertical  interval  of  more  than  200  feet. 

In  this  interval  lie  the  Mercer  group  of  coal  beds  and  the 
Sharon  block  coal  bed  —  the  variable  coal  beds  of  Crawford 
county  to  be  mentioned  further  on,  —  the  thin  coal  beds 
north  of  the  Allegheny  river  in  Venango  and  Warren  coun- 
ties —  and  the  most  northerly  coal  beds  of  McKean  county. 

These  intermediate  groups  of  coal  beds  attain  their  best 
development  in  Mercer  county  ;  but  they  appear  to  be  simi- 
lar in  physical  character  wherever  they  are  found.  They 
lie  in  "swamps,"  irregular  in  outline  and  uncertain  in  ex- 
tent, and  are  often  liable  to  "pinch  out  and  terminate  when 
least  expected."  They  may  be  locally  traced  with  consid- 
erable uniformity  as  to  levels  and  position,  but  can  seldom 
be  relied  upon  as  persistent  over  wide  areas. 

The  interval  in  which  these  coal  beds  occur  is  occupied 
largely  with  sandy  measures,  and  local  layers  of  pebbles  ; 
changing  frequently  from  conglomerate  to  sandstone  and 
from  sandstone  to  slate  and  shale  ;  sometimes  thin  bedded, 
sometimes  very  massive  ;  one  bed  fading  out  and  another 
of  a  different  character  coming  in. 

§  36.  The  Pottsville  conglomerate,  (XII,  the  Serai  con- 
glomerate of  Prof.  Rogers,)  the  recognized  base  of  the  coal 
measures  in  eastern  Pennsylvania,  is  1000  feet  thick  at 


GAUL  AND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  15 

Pottsville,  as  said  above,  and  cannot  be  looked  upon  as  a 
solid  homogeneous  formation,  but  as  a  series,  or  group,  of 
pebble-rock  and  sand-rock  layers,  separated  by  beds  of 
coarse  shale  and  slate,  black  slate,  and  coal.  At  the  west 
end  of  the  Pottsville  basin  it  holds  a  number  of  small  coal 
beds,  and  one—the  Lykens  valley  bed — of  great  size  and 
value. 

It  may  very  well  be  represented  then  in  western  Pennsyl- 
vania by  the  interval  above  described,  extended  to  include 
the  Homewood  sandstone  at  the  top,  and  the  Garland  con- 
glomerate at  the  bottom, — an  interval  of  full  300  feet  in 
thickness,  and  with  a  character  which  closely  resembles  the 
description  just  given. 

§  37.  It  may  be  pertinently  asked,  therefore,  why  the 
Homewood  sandstone  at  the  top  of  this  interval,  should  be 
regarded  as  the  sole  representative  in  the  west  of  tlie  whole 
of  the  Pottsville  conglomerate  formation  No.  XII  in  the 
east,  seeing  that  the  whole  series  of  strata  between  the  top 
of  the  Homewood  and  the  base  of  the  Garland  has  a  gen- 
eral constitution  imitating  so  closely  the  general  constitu- 
tion of  No.  XII  in  the  physical  character  of  its  members 
or  alternations? 

In  other  words,  why  should  not  the  Garland  conglom- 
erate be  viewed  as  the  bottom  member  of  No.  XII,  and  the 
Sharon  and  Mercer  groups  as  intra-conglomerate  coals  ? 

c.    The  Pottsmlle  conglomerate  described  in  1S5S. 

For  the  convenience  of  ihe  readers  of  this  chapter,  por- 
tions of  the  excellent  description  of  the  formation  (No. 
XII)  in  eastern  and  middle  Pennsylvania,  by  Prof.  II.  I). 
Rogers,  in  his  Final  Report  of  18oS,*  is  here  appended. 

§  38.   "At  Mauch  Chunk  its  thickness  is  about  9»0  feet. 

"It  is  here  composed  of  hard  gray  siliceous  conglomer- 
ate in  ponderous  beds,  coarse  gray  sandstones,  sandy  clay 
shales,  and  a  few  thin  layers  of  fissile  black  coal,  slate,  and 
fireclay. 

§  39.   "'At  Tamaqua  its  thickness  is  about  803  feet. 

"Here  it  is  an  alternation  of  very  coarse  siliceous  con- 


Vol.  I,  page  146. 


16  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

glomerate  in  massive  beds,  the  pebbles  of  the  size  of  an 
egg  or  orange  down  to  that  of  a  nut  or  pea  ;  also  of  inter- 
posed coarse  and  fine  gray  sandstones,  and  here  and  there 
a  sandy  shale.  There  are  also  two  or  three  imperfectly 
developed  beds  of  coal  in  it. 

§  40.   "At  Pottsmlle  its  thickness  is  about  1030  feet. 

"Here  the  rock  contains  a  less  amount  of  coarse  con- 
glomerate, a  larger  proportion  of  rough  argillaceous  sand- 
stone, two  or  three  bands  of  coarse  shale,  two  or  three  beds 
of  coal  slate,  and  a  very  thin  imperfectly  formed  layer  of 
very  slaty  coal." 

"It  is  divisible  at  Pottsville  into  three  members. 

§  41.  "The  upper  division  of  the  formation,  both  in  the 
Sharp  mountain  and  around  the  Anthracite  basins,  gener- 
ally has  a  more  uniform  composition  than  the  beds  beneath. 
Many  of  the  more  massive  strata  are  composed  solely  of 
large  pebbles  of  white  quartz  of  nearly  similar  size  and 
shape,  packed  together  with  great  regularity.  These  are 
somewhat  ovoid,  smooth,  or  actually  polished,  and  inclose 
contact,  their  larger  dimensions  parallel  with  the  plane  of 
the  bedding." 

This  would  correspond  with  the  Homewood  sandstone  of 
the  Beaver  river  country,  in  western  Pennsylvania. 

§  42.  The  middle  division  of  the  formation  consists 
chiefly  of  thick  irregular  obliquely-deposited  beds  of  a  hard 
blue  rock  made  up  of  quartz,  sand,  clay,  and  small  pebbles 
of  slate.  In  the  Sharp  mountain  this  part  of  the  formation 
embraces  beds  of  slate,  almost  identical  with  the  slates  which 
inclose  the  coal-seams. 

"At  least  one  bed  of  coal,  sometimes  of  a  thickness  fit  for 
mining,  usually  occurs  in  this  division. 

"Near  the  east  end  of  the  basin  the  thickness  of  this  mid- 
dle group  is  probably  not  less  than  200  feet.  It  is  the  cause 
of  the  flatness  of  the  summits  of  both  the  Sharp  and  Locust 
mountains  throughout  the  range  from  Mauch  Chunk  to  the 
Little  Schuylkill." 

This  division  would  seem  to  correspond  well  with  the  Mer- 
cer coal  group  of  western  Pennsylvania,  underlying  the 


OAKLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.   17 

Homewood  sandstone  and  overlying  the  Connoquenessing 
sandstones.  See  Reports  of  Progress  Q,  QQ  and  V. 

Or  it  may  represent  the  entire  interval  of  200  feet  between 
the  base  of  the  Homewood  sandstones  and  the  top  of  the 
Sharon  conglomerate,  and  therefore  include  not  only  the 
Mercer  coal  group,  but  the  next  lower  Sharon  coal  group. 

§  43.  The  Lower  division,  is  subdivided  by  Professor 
Rogers  in  another  part  of  his  Final  Report*  in  the  following 
manner : 

' '  4.  Chiefly  yellow  and  white  sandstones,  with  included 
layers  of  a  grey  grit,  composed  of  pebbles  of  crushed  slate 

"3.  A  coarse  silicious  conglomerate  of  large  and  irregu- 
lar pebbles,  chiefly  of  milky  quartz,  but  with  others  resem- 
bling the  Primal  and  Matinal  slates ;  and  a  few  of  dark 
grey  sandstone,  of  perhaps  the  same  age 

"2.  Massive  beds  of  a  conglomerate  composed  of  quartz 
pebbles  in  a  paste  of  disintegrated  green  slate.  These  beds 
also  include  layers  of  red  shale.  The  thickness  of  this  por- 
tion is  from  10  to  20  feet.  In  the  very  lowest  bands  of  this 
rock,  especially  those  which  alternate  with,  or  are  imbedded 
in,  the  upper  layers  of  the  Umbral  red  shale,  this  imbed- 
ding material  is  greenish,  and  sometimes  quite  yellow  .  . 

"1.  Yellow  and  grey  sandstones,  alternating  with  thin 
beds  of  red  s?iale,  identical  with  the  Umbral  red  shale,  and 
containing  a  few  scattered  quartz  pebbles,  some  of  which 
are  large.  This  division,  which  exhibits  a  passage  from  the 
Umbral  to  the  Serai  deposits,  is  from  60  to  70  feet  thick. 

"At  Bear  gap,  Wiconisco  basin,  it  measures  460  feet. 

"At  this  locality,  and  indeed  in  the  outcrops  of  the  base 
of  the  coal  measures  throughout  the  western  part  of  the 
Wiconisco  basin,  the  group  consists  wholly  of  coal  meas- 
ures, having  lost  entirely  that  preponderance  of  conglom- 
erates and  coarse  sandstones  which  it  contains  throughout 
the  Sharp  mountain,  and  indeed  in  botli  borders  of  the 
Pottsville  basin  as  far  west  as  Dauphin.  It  possesses  here 
even  less  of  the  Sharp  mountain  or  conglomerate  type  than 

*Geol.  of  Penn.,  1858,  Vol.  II,  p.  21. 

2  III 


18  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

it  exhibits  in  the  Shamokin  basin  still  further  northwest- 
ward. 

§  44.   "In  ShamoJcin  gap  No.  XII  measures  630  feet. 

In  the  mountain  at  the  village  of  Shamokin,  the  lower 
or  conglomeritic  group  of  coal  measures — restricting  its 
limits,  as  we  have  done  elsewhere,  to  the  top  of  the  hard 
rocks  below  the  fifth  seam  of  coal  ascending,  which  is  very 
generally  the  commencement  of  the  softer  coal  measures — 
consists  of  an  alternation  of  ribs  of  nut  coarse  conglomer- 
ates, pebbly  and  fine  grained  sandstones,  with  coarse  shales 
and  coal  slates  in  about  equal  proportions.  It  is  made  up 
of  five  of  the  hard  siliceous  strata  and  four  of  the  softer 
argillaceous,  each  of  the  latter  including  a  bed  of  coal: 
some  of  these  are  of  good  quality  and  thickness. 

§  45.   "In  Zerbe'* s  gap  it  measures  about  500  feet. 

"Here,  at  Treverton,  we  see  the  most  natural  section  of 
the  conglomeritic  coal  measures  in  the  Shamokin  basin. 
The  mass  consists  of  five  ponderous  strata  of  silicious  con- 
glomerate and  coarse  sandstone,  and  four  thick  beds  of 
argillaceous  shale  and  slate  in  regular  alternation  with  them 
• — the  two  kinds  of  rocks  in  about  equal  quantity.  Each 
argillaceous  member  encloses  a  thick  and  valuable  bed  of 
semi-anthracite.  In  this  western  end  of  the  Shamokin 
basin  these  coals  of  the  conglomerate  group  are  far  thicker 
and  of  higher  average  purity  than  anywhere  else  in  the 
corresponding  part  of  the  coal  measures  around  the  anthra- 
cite region. 

§  4(5.  "  Of  the  reduction  in  the  coarseness  of  the  conglom- 
erate, as  we  compare  it  in  its  successive  outcrops  more  and 
more  towards  the  northwest,  there  is  the  amplest  evidence. 
Passing  from  the  Sharp  to  the  Broad  mountain  on  the  north 
side  of  the  same  basin,  there  is  a  perceptible  diminution 
in  the  pebbles,  and  an  approximation  to  greater  uniformity 
of  size. 

"Advancing  to  the  outcrop  of  the  Spring  mountain,  the 
conglomerate  is  seen  at  the  notch  or  gap  of  Hazle  creek 
with  its  pebbles  considerably  smaller,  the  beds  of  slate 
somewhat  thinner  and  less  numerous,  and  the  sandstones 
and  conglomerates  less  abruptly  separated.  The  pebbles 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.   19 

are  more  even  in  size,  and  are  packed  together  with  less  of 
interposed  sand. 

"In  the  bituminous  coal  field  of  Broad  Top  mountain 
in  Huntingdon  and  Bedford,  the  rock  exists  chiefly  as  a 
light  grey  coarse  siliceous  sandstone,  with  but  little  of  the 
conglomeritic  character.  At  Uray's  hill,  on  the  edge  of 
this  high  plateau,  it  measures  not  more  than  250  feet.  And 
this  estimate  accords  well  with  observations  made  at  other 
places  in  the  basin.  In  this  district  as  in  the  anthracite 
basin,  the  rock  embraces  one  or  more  beds  of  coal,  show- 
ing that  it  is  as  elsewhere  a  part  of  the  coal  formation." 

§  47.  It  would  be  misleading  to  quote  from  the  final  re- 
port of  1858  the  author' s  generalizations  respecting  the  con- 
glomerate in  western  Pennsylvania,  because  the  facts  on 
which  they  were  founded  have  been  virtually  set  aside  by 
the  closer  examinations  of  that  part  of  the  State  in  recent 
years ;  but  all  that  is  quoted  above  stands  good,  no  new 
facts  having  appeared  to  interfere  with  the  abundant  mate- 
rials collected  by  the  first  survey. 

d.   The  Sub -Garland  sandstone. 

§  48.  The  importance  of  this  yellow  sandstone  as  an 
auxiliary  in  tracing  the  Garland  conglomerate  was  not  fully 
appreciated  by  me  in  1875,  and  only  after  the  work  in  other 
districts  had  sufficiently  advanced  to  admit  of  comparison 
of  sections  on  the  east  and  west,  did  its  true  significance 
come  to  be  understood. 

§  49.  Both  at  Pike's  rocks,  which  was  the  first  exposure 
of  Grarland  conglomerate  surveyed,  and  at  Snodgrass  quarry , 
near  which  was  the  last  or  westernmost  upon  the  line,  as 
well  as  other  exposures  of  it  passed  in  carrying  on  the  sur- 
vey, this  yellow  sandstone  was  noted. 

At  Pike's  rocks  it  lay  about  25'  below  the  Garland  con- 
glomerate, if  the  water  well  record  be  correct ;  and  at  Snod- 
grass' quarries,  41'. 

§  50.  An  investigation  of  this  yellow  sandstone  was  not 
followed  out  at  that  time  in  either  direction,  except  in  a 
general  way  ;  the  equivalency  of  the  Garland  rock  with  the 
Olean  of  N.  Y.  and  with  the  conglomerate  of  northeastern 


20  III.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOH]^  F.   CARLL. 


Ohio  seeming  to  be  satisfactorily  assured  by  what  had  al- 
ready been  done.  But  in  1877,  Prof  White,  extending  his 
detailed  survey  of  the  Shenango  river  country  to  James- 
town, joined  on  to  my  section  there,  and  identified  my  yel- 
low sandstone  with  his  Shenango  sandstone,  and  my  Gar- 
land conglomerate  with  his  Sharon  conglomerate.  To  him 
therefore  belongs  the  credit  of  having  first  called  attention 
to  the  importance  of  this  sub-conglomerate  sandstone. 

§  51.  Meantime,  explorations  in  Warren  county  by  Mr. 
Chance,  Mr.  Randall,  and  myself  had  shown  that  a  similar 
stratum  of  sandstone  was  traceable  beneath  the  Garland 
conglomerate  in  that  county  ;  and  Mr.  Ashburner  had  also 
discovered  it  beneath  his  Olean  conglomerate  in  McKean 
county. 

§  52.  It  thus  seems  to  be  a  very  persistent  rock  and  co- 
extensive with  the  carboniferous  conglomerate  on  its  north- 
ern outcrop. 

§  53.  The  two  rocks  may  also  be  seen  in  more  southern 
exposures  at  the  quarries  at  Franklin  and  in  the  bluffs  at 
Oil  City  in  Venango  county,  in  the  river  hills  at  Warren, 
at  Big  Bend  in  Warren  county,  and  in  several  places  in 
McKean  county. 

§  54.  The  interval  between  the  Garland  conglomerate 
and  the  underlying  Shenango  yellow  sandstone  in  these 
several  exposures  varies  only  between  25'  and  55',  but  in 
some  parts  of  Forest  county  and  southern  McKean  the  in- 
terval increases  to.  100'  or  more. 

§  55.  Facts  then  seem  to  warrant  the  conclusion  that  Prof. 
White's  Shenango  sandstone,  my  Yellow  sandstone,  Mr. 
Randall's  Sub-Conglomerate,  and  Mr.  Ashburner'  s  Sub- 
Olean  are  merely  different  names  for  the  same  stratum, 
and  there  is  a  general  sentiment  among  the  geologists  of 
the  survey  that  inthis  interval*  are  to  be  sought  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  Mauch  Chunk  red  shales  of  formation  XI. 

§  56.  The  constitution  of  the  rock  in  question  (Shenango 
yellow  sandstone)  varies  greatly  in  different  localities. 
West  of  French  creek  it  is  a  yellowish  sandstone  of  medium 
grain  ;  contains  many  pockets  or  balls  of  iron  ore  and  clay  ; 
and  often  runs  into  beds  of  flags.  Further  east  it  assumes 

*That  is  between  the  Olean  and  Sub-Olean. 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  21 

sometimes  a  conglomerate  character.  Northeast  of  Warren 
it  is  often  a  homogeneous  mass  of  pebbles  of  the  size  of 
wheat  grains  ;  contains  much  iron  ore  in  irregular  seams 
and  balls  ;  and  frequently  many  fragments  oifisTi  remains. 
It  weathers  in  small,  irregular  pieces ;  and  when  lying  in 
the  tops  of  hills  forms  a  very  characteristic  terrace,  sur- 
rounded by  steep  and  regular  escarpments;  giving  a  hilltop 
the  appearance  of  a  truncated  pyramid,  or  of  some  exten- 
sive earthwork  fortification. 

§  57.  Southeast  of  Warren  this  (Sub-Olean)  rock  takes  on 
a  more  conglomeritic  character,  enclosing  pebbles  even  an 
inch  and  a  half  in  diameter.  It  here  forms  rock  cities,  the 
blocks  of  which  are  40'  or  50'  in  thickness.  These  are  often 
in  the  near  vicinity  of  rock  cities  made  by  the  Garland 
(Olean)  conglomerate;  and  the  two  exhibitions  are  then  so 
much  alike  as  to  be  geologically  as  well  as  geographically 
confounded. 

§  58.  At  least  four  characteristic  features  of  composition 
however  serve  to  distinguish  the  lower  from  the  upper — 
the  sub-Olean  from  the  Olean — conglomerate. 

1.  The  lower  rock  is  conspicuously  current-bedded,  the 
face  of  the  great  walls  of  horizontal  strata  being  crossed  by 
multitudes  of  oblique  lines,   suggesting  their  deposit  in 
rapid  waters,  the  direction  of  the  current  being  frequently 
changed. 

2.  The  pebbles  of  the  lower  rock  are  remarkable  for  their 
flattened  or  lens-shape  form  ;  and  the  examination  of  many 
and  distant  localities  by  several  independent  observers  has 
put  beyond  doubt  this  peculiarity.     On  the  contrary,  the 
pebbles  of  the  upper  rock,  and  generally  of  all  the  con- 
glomeratic sandstones  upwards,  to  and  into  the  coal  meas- 
ures, have  a  round  or  rudely  round  or  oval  shape  ;  and 
observation  has  shown  that  this  also  is  true  over  wide  areas 
of  country,  to  whatever  cause  it  may  be  assigned. 

3.  Fish  spines  and  fragments  of  bones,  and  land  plants, 
have  been  found  in  the  lower  rock  in  many  places.     And 
from  the  interval  between  the  lower  and  the  upper  con- 
glomerate, where  it  is  fairly  exposed  in  the  vicinity  of  War- 
ren, Mr.  Randall  has  made  a  very  large  collection  of  fossils 


22  III.    EEPOET  OF  PEOGEESS.   JOHI*  F.  CAELL. 

of  well  known  Waverly  types  which  have  been  secured 
for  the  Museum  of  the  Survey.  But  where  the  rock  has 
been  passed  through  in  borings  for  oil,  further  south,  fos- 
sils have  not  been  noticed;  partly,  no  doubt,  because  not 
looked  for  by  the  borers ;  partly  because  they  are  ground 
up  by  the  boring  tools  ;  but  chiefly  perhaps  because  the 
deposit  changes  its  thickness  and  composition  in  that  di- 
rection. 

4.  The  lower  rock  is  deeply  discolored  with  iron  in  all  its 
seams  and  crevices ;  and  the  whole  mass  is  evidently  fer- 
ruginous ;  having  a  yellow  and  sometimes  a  brownish  tint. 
Mr.  White  reports  it  in  his  district  charged  habitually  with 
balls  of  iron  ore  to  such  extent  as  to  induce  him  at  first  to 
name  it  the  ferriferous  sandstone. 


CHAPTER  III.* 

The  Garland  Conglomerate,  and  underlying  measures  in 
Warren  county :— Pike's  rocks;  freehold  township;  Oar- 
land;  Spring  Greek  ;  West  Spring  Creek ;  McGlay  Hill. 

Pike's  Rocks. 

§  59.  The  dividing  ridge  between  Little  Brokenstraw  and 
Stillwater  creeks,  in  Sugar  Grove  township,  Warren  county, 
rises  to  an  altitude  of  1980'  above  ocean  level. 

Several  fine  exhibitions  of  conglomerate  occur  on  it,  the 
most  remarkable  one  of  which  is  called  Pike 's  Rocks. 

§  60.  This  is  a  huge  mass  of  conglomerate,  broken  and 
fissured,  irregular  in  outline,  and  covering  an  area  of  about 
two  acres.  It  presents  mural  exposures  on  all  sides,  and 
looks  in  the  distance,  whatever  point  of  perspective  may  be 
chosen,  like  the  ruins  of  some  Cyclopean  structure  built 
by  a  pre-historic  race. 

§  61.  Unlike  other  Rock  cities — most  of  which  rest  on 
wooded  eminences  obscured  from  distant  view,  or  run  as 
an  escarpment  of  rock  along  the  crest  of  some  dividing 
ridge — these  rocks  stand  out  in  bold  relief  against  the  sky 
on  the  summit  of  one  of  the  highest  hills  of  the  country, 
surrounded  by  well-cultivated  fields,  stretching  from  the 
base  of  the  rocks  over  gracefully  rounded  hillsides  into  the 
valley  below. 

The  rock-walls  rise  about  30  feet  in  height — perpendicu- 
lar or  overhanging,  and  weathered  into  fantastic  profiles. 
Avenues  wind  in  all  directions  through  the  ruins,  and  peb- 
ble-covered slopes  lead  over  natural  arches  to  the  summits. 

§  62.  The  whole  rock  is  a  massive  conglomerate  from  top 
to  bottom,  but  very  uneven  in  composition,  and  irregular 
in  structure.  Here  a  layer  of  three  feet  of  clear  pebbles, 


*  Report  of  -work  done  in  1875. 
(23  HI.  ) 


24  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

white,  coarse,  and  occasionally  as  large  as  hens -eggs,  with 
scarcely  enough  of  sand-matrix  to  hold  them  together — 
there  a  stratum  of  finer  conglomerate,  and  a  larger  per- 
centage of  sand ;  here  oblique  bedding  in  one  direction- 
there  in  another. 

The  disintegrated  pebbles  and  sand-grains  spread  all 
around  the  base  of  the  exposure  like  a  sea-beach,  and  be- 
come, when  screened,  valuable  for  masonry. 

§  63.  A  zone  of  warm,  sandy,  pebbly  soil  encircles  the 
rocks,  beyond  which  the  land  becomes  more  cold  and  clayey. 

From  the  top  no  hills  can  be  seen  as  high  as  this  one  ex- 
cept to  the  southeast  and  one  to  the  northeast. 

Several  pine-stumps  two  feet  and  a  half  in  diameter  re- 
main on  the  bare  summit  where  there  is  scarcely  a  foot  of 
mould — their  roots  penetrating  deep  into  the  fissures  and 
reaching  over  the  naked  rock.  Some  30  or  40  large  pines 
are  said  to  have  grown  upon  and  immediately  around  the 
rocks,  the  only  trees  of  the  kind  in  the  vicinity. 

§  64.  The  Sub-Garland  yellow  sandstone. — Within  30 
rods  of  these  rocks  and  about  15  feet  below  their  exposed 
base  a  well  was  recently  sunk  for  water  by  Mr.  J.  S.  Jaquay, 
which  passed  down  through  10  feet  of  drift  clay  and  then 
32'  of  coarse  yellow  sandstone;  water  here  came  in  and 
stopped  the  workmen  before  they  reached  the  base  of  the 
sandstone.  The  water  is  good  but  somewhat  roily  and  liable 
to  fail  in  dry  weather. 

In  blasting  the  rock  in  the  well  it  was  found  to  be  full  of 
crevices  running  in  a  northeast-southwest  direction,  one  of 
them  ten  inches  wide  and  eight  feet  deep.-  These  fissures 
doubtless  prevent  the  water  from  being  constant,  as  it  has 
an  opportunity  of  flowing  freely  through  them  to  appear  in 
copious  springs,  along  the  base  of  the  sandstone,  lower 
down  the  hillside,  leaving  dry  the  upper  portions  of  the 
rock  in  seasons  of  long  continued  drouth. 

The  Yellow  sandstone  (according  to  Mr.  Hoppins  who 
lives  near  by  and  has  sunk  a  great  many  water  wells  in  this 
section  of  the  country)  is  found  on  all  of  the  high  ridges, 
resting  upon  a  "blue,  hard,  flaggy  sandstone  or  slate." 
Unlike  the  conglomerate  above  it,  it  is  not  reliable  for  af- 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  25 

fording  water.  Wells  sunk  a  few  feet  in  the  "blue  bed 
rock,"  however,  universally  furnish  a  never  failing  supply, 
and  that  of  good  quality. 

§  65.  CJiemung  shales  underlie  the  yellow  sandstone  and 
exhibit  themselves  in  the  road  gulleys  and  side  ravines,  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  the  whole  of  this  country  is  covered 
to  considerable  depth  with  Drift-clays,  principally  local,  or 
derived  from  the  glacial  abrasion  of  the  country  rocks.  The 
bedded  rocks  wherever  exposed  beneath  the  clay  consist  of 
characteristic  Chemung  brown  and  olive  shales,  wave-mark- 
ed, and  inclosing  fossil  shells,  and  fucoids. 

§  66.  Drift  heaps. — It  is  a  noticeable  feature  here,  that 
the  bed-rock  appears  nearer  the  surface  on  the  northerly 
slopes  of  the  hills  than  on  the  southerly.  (See  §  78.) 

It  is  also  noteworthy  that  the  southerly  ends  of  ridges, 
at  the  confluence  of  streams  flowing  south,  are  almost  al- 
ways covered  with  heavy  deposits  of  rather  angular  rem- 
nants of  the  local  rocks,  intermixed  with  foreign  Drift. 

These  accumulations  suggest  the  idea  that  the  mingled 
drift  has  been  brought  down  the  valleys  in  separate  currents 
and  thrown  off  their  margins,  as  they  closed  around  the 
point  to  fill  the  one  channel  below. 

Lottsmlle  rock  city. 

§  67.  In  Freehold  township,  on  a  bold  spur  between 
Swamp  run  and  Little  Brokenstraw  creek,  about  half  way 
between  Lottsville  and  Wrightsville  is  another  Rock  city 
of  conglomerate,  in  plain  sight  of  and  almost  equal  in  ex- 
tent to  Pike's  rocks. 

This  is  the  most  northern  Garland  outlier  in  the  western 
part  of  Warren  county. 

A  line  drawn  from  this  point  to  Spring  Creek  station  on 
the  Big  Brokenstraw  would  very  closely  define  the  north- 
western limit  of  the  ro'ck. 

Considerable  bodies  of  it  lie  in  the  ridges  to  the  southeast 
and  in  some  places  quite  continuously. 

Our  profile  shows  it  on  the  State  road  between  the  two 
Brokenstraws  and  again  between  Little  Brokenstraw  and 


26  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Still  water  creek;  but  bej^ond  this  range  to  the  northwest  it 
has  all  been  swept  away. 

Garland  quarries. 

§  68.  The  Garland  quarries  are  found  on  the  crest  of  the 
ridge  between  Blue  Eye  run  and  Big  Brokenstraw  creek, 
about  one  mile  northwest  of  Garland,  in  Pittsfield  township, 
Warren  county. 

The  base  of  the  rock,  where  worked,  lies  480'  above  the 
Philadelphia  and  Erie  railway  track,  or  1810'  above  tide. 

The  summit  of  the  ridge  is  55'  higher,  i.  e.,  1865'. 

§  69.  Two  quarries  are  opened  here,  both  of  which  lower 
their  material  to  railroad  level  by  gravity  cars,  operated  by 
wire  cables,  over  steeply  inclined  tram -ways.  But  although 
there  is  no  lack  of  good  stone,  and  the  shipping  facilities 
cannot  be  surpassed,  very  little  is  being  done  at  present 
(1875)  at  either  one  of  them. 

§  70.  The  sandstone  is  40'  thick  ;  massive  ;  coarse-grained  ; 
obliquely  bedded  ;  colored  yellow  and  white  in  some  parts, 
iron  stained  in  others.  Pebbly  horizontal  layers  and  pock- 
ets occur ;  and  the  pebbly  layers  seem  to  recur  more  fre- 
quently near  the  base  ;  but  it  can  hardly  be  said  that  the 
lower  portion  is  uniformly  conglomeritic,  or  the  upper  por- 
tion a  consistent  sandstone. 

The  rock  works  remarkably  free  when  fresh  from  the 
ledge,  being  soft,  and  easily  dressed  into  any  desirable 
shape  ;  but  it  hardens  on  exposure  to  the  atmosphere  into 
a  durable  building-stone,  useful,  when  a  proper  selection  is 
made,  for  all  architectural  purposes. 

§  71.  Fallen  masses. — The  face  of  the  cliff  overhanging 
the  Brokenstraw  valley  at  this  point  has  been  undermined, 
and  huge  blocks,  40' in  thickness,  have. become  detached 
from  the  brow  of  the  hill  and  been  arrested  in  all  attitudes 
in  their  descent  to  the  stream  below ;  some  standing  on 
edge  ;  some  turned  completely  over.  Those  that  stand  on 
edge  are  easily  split  in  the  lines  of  deposition,  and  there- 
fore preferred  by  quarrymen  to  the  rock  in  place  above. 

§  72.  Fossil  tree. — On  one  of  these  half  revolved  blocks, 
where  the  free  side  has  been  split  off,  is  visible  the  impres- 


OAKLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  '27 

sion  of  a  carboniferous  tree  stem,  8  inches  in  diameter  and 
12  feet  long.  The  surface  markings  being  too  imperfect  to 
indicate  its  species. 

It  is  evident  from  an  inspection  of  the  fossil  that  this  tree 
stem  was  stranded  on  a  sandy  shore  or  sandbank,  and  caused 
an  eddy  in  the  current  which  deposited  coarse,  gravel  on 
one  side  of  the  tree  to  the  distance  of  a  foot  or  more,  while 
on  the  other  side  of  the  tree  only  fine  sand  is  seen.  The 
cast  of  the  tree  body  is  composed  principally  of  fine  sand. 

Now  if  the  exact  position  of  this  mass  of  rock  before  it 
was  displaced  could  be  discovered,  then  the  direction  of  the 
current  which  stranded  its  fossil  log  might  be  ascertained 
from  these  circumstances  with  considerable  accuracy. 

§  73.  The  Sub-Garland  yellow  sandstone  seems  to  be 
poorly  developed  at  Garland,  a  thin  band  of  fine  pebble 
conglomerate  being  all  the  representative  of  it  that  could 
be  found  ;  but  as  the  talus  from  the  upper  rock  obscures 
its  horizon  it  quite  possibly  may  have  been  overlooked. 

§  74.  Garland  section,  Fig.  A,  page  31. — On  the  point  of 
the  bluff,  about  80  rods  west  from  the  Philadelphia  and 
Erie  railway  station  at  Garland  the  following  section  was 
obtained ;  and  it  possesses  peculiar  interest  as  being  the 
only  observable  exposure,  in  the  six  miles  between  Garland 
and  Spring  creek  station,  of  a  massive  sandrock  of  any 
considerable  thickness  occupying  the  interval  between  the 
conglomerate  and  water  level  of  Brokenstraw  creek  : 

Shale,  blue  and  brown,  sandy,  1365', 15  '  to  1350 


Sandstone,  weathering  brown,  a  mass  of  spirifers,  .    2 

Shale,  brown, • 5 

Sandstone,  tine-grained  massive,  grey, 10 

Shale, } 

Plate  of  sandstone  with  fossils, £ 

Shale,  fissile,  brown  and  blue, 18 

Thin  sandstone  with  spirifers, 

Shale  to  R.  R.  level,  2 

Concealed  to  creek  level  about, 18| 


to  1348 
to  1343 
to  1333 
to  1332| 
to  1332 
to  1314 
to  1313| 
to  1311 i 
to  1293" 


§  74.  On  the  Cotter  farm  about  one  mile  above  this  point 
may  be  seen  a  clean  exposure  at  this  horizon  in  which  no 
massive  sandstone  appears.  The  section  there  is  as  follows, 
descending : 


28  III.          BEPOKT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOffiT  F.   CARLJL. 

Rocks  concealed. 

Flaggy  sandstone,  (1385'  above  tide,)  .   .  ' 5' 

Shale,  brown  and  olive;  upper  half  somewhat  sandy  lower 
half  argillaceous  and  fissile, 50' 

The  elevation  1385'  seems  to  be  too  high  to  permit  this 
flaggy  sandstone  to  represent  the  sandstone  at  Garland. 

§  75.  South  of  the  Brokenstraw  the  valley  hills  are  gen- 
erally capped  with  conglomerate.  In  fact  it  may  be  said  to 
extend  in  almost  an  unbroken  ridge  (with  the  exception  of 
the  low  divide  between  the  heads  of  Caldwell  creek  and 
Mullingar  run)  but  at  varying  distances  from  the  creek,  all 
the  way  from  Thompson's  station  on  the  Allegheny  river, 
to  the  high  bluff-point  at  the  junction  of  Spring  creek  with 
the  Brokenstraw,  beyond  which,  to  the  northwest,  it  is  not 
to  be  found,  as  the  hills  are  not  high  enough  to  hold  it. 

§  76.  Horn's  cliffs. — About  three  miles  northwest  of 
Garland,  cliifs  of  Garland  conglomerate  rise  from  the  south 
bank  of  the  Brokenstraw,  near  the  residence  of  Mr.  C. 
Horn,  and  they  are  similar  to  those  at  the  Garland  quarries 
on  the  north  bank.  The  rock  is  here  at  least  30'  thick ; 
white,  fine-grained,  solid,  and  with  no  appearance  of  peb- 
bles. A  little  back  of  the  brow  it  is  covered  to  the  depth 
of  ten  or  fifteen  feet  with  surface  deposits  sustaining  a 
heavy  growth  of  pine,  hemlock,  beech,  maple,  and  other 
woods. 

Spring  Creek* 

§  77.  The  junction  of  this  stream  with  the  Brokenstraw 
forms  a  broad  basin  bounded  by  hills.  Terraces  or  foot- 
hills of  Drift  on  each  side  of  the  basin  and  extending  some 
distance  down  the  Brokenstraw,  indicate  that  the  water 
level  some  day  has  been  ^,t  least  fifty  feet  higher  than  at 
present.  The  stream  has  cut  down  through  this  Drift  in 
changing  channels,  now  sweeping  to  this  side  now  to  that, 
leaving  islands  or  mounds  scattered  all  about  the  bottoms. 
These  mounds  are  composed  of  coarser  and  less  water- worn 
materials  than  the  Drift  found  at  lower  levels  along  the 
margins  of  the  present  streams.  They  have  been  covered 

*  Seo  Plate  3B. 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  29 

with  a  forest  of  immense  pines  ;  some  of  the  stumps  still 
remaining  measure  from  3  to  4  feet  through. 

§78.  An  accumulation  of  Drift,  such  as  described  in 
§  66  above,  occurs  at  the  junction  of  Dry  run  on  the  north 
side  of  the  basin,  on  the  point  of  the  nose  between  the  two 
streams.  It  lias  been  quarried  for  railroad  ballast,  and  the 
excavation  shows  a  large  percentage  of  northern  rocks, 
among  which  are  frequent  gneissic  bowlders  a  foot  or  more 
in  diameter. 

§  79.  Erosion.—  There  are  good  reasons  for  inferring  that 
the  stream  once  flowed  through  this  basin  at  a  level  consid- 
erably higher  than  its  present  bed. 

§  80.  Buried  valley.—  There  are  equally  conclusive  proofs 
that  it  has  also  flowed  at  a  much  lower  level.  For,  an  oil 
well  on  the  Cotter  farm  was  carried  down  nearly  200' 
through  gravel  and  clay  before  reaching  bed  rock  ;  and  one 
at  Spring  Creek  station,  137  feet.  Within  20  rods  of  the 
last  named  well  a  trench  was  dug,  but  a  few  feet  deep,  for 
a  mill  foundation  and  yet  the  walls  were  laid  upon  the  strat- 
ified rocks  in  place. 

This  interesting  feature  of  old  filled-in  channels  is  notice- 
able in  all  the  broadly  eroded  valleys  of  our  northern 
streams  where  oil  wells  have  been  sunk.  But  when  the  val- 
leys in  going  southward  become  narrow  and  the  streams 
enter  the  deep  cuts  between  the  conglomerate-capped  hills, 
the  bed  rock  is  always  found  nearer  the  surface. 

§  81.  Fossils.- — The  measures  beneath  the  Garland  con- 
glomerate in  all  this  section  of  country  may  be  briefly  des- 
cribed as  blue,  olive,  and  brown  shales,  with  occasional 
thin  bands  of  grey  and  yellowish  sandstone.  The  most 
common  fossils  are  Fucoids  and  Spirifers,  with  less  fre- 
quent specimens  of  Productus,  Cypricardia,  and  Amculo- 
pecten. 

West  Spring  Creek. 

§  82.  The  little  settlement  of  West  Spring  creek  is  located 
in  the  broad  drift-filled  valley  of  Spring  creek  where  it  is 
joined  by  the  West  branch,  about  3  miles  above  its  conflu- 
ence with  the  Brokenstraw.  The  "bottom  lands"  here  are 


30  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRE3 .5.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

some  80'  higher  than  those  along  the  Brokenstraw.  A  mill- 
pond  lies  on  either  side,  near  the  base  of  the  inclosing  hills 
and  the  dwellings  are  built  on  the  triangular  flat  between 
the  two  streams. 

§  83.  Water  wells. — A  rather  remarkable  feature  is  no- 
ticed here  in  connection  with  the  water  wells.  They  are 
sunk  to  a  depth  of  30',  through  coarse  gravel,  to  a  point  at 
least  15'  below  the  surface  of  the  mill-ponds  ;  and  yet  it  is 
affirmed  that  the  water  in  the  wells  tever  rises  to  the  level 
of  the  ponds  and  seems  to  be  in  no  vay  affected  by  them. 
In  dry  weather  the  most  shallow  oi  these  wells  fail,  the 
ponds  being  still  full  of  water,  but  on  being  sunk  deeper  in 
the  gravel  a  good  supply  of  water  is  always  found. 

These  facts  seem  to  indicate  a  drainage  of  the  gravel  beds 
through  the  lower  levels  of  the  Brokenstraw  gravels  inde- 
pendently of  the  ponds  and  streams  at  the  surface. 

§  84.  Bates'  Section.— In  the  face  of  the  bluff,  south  of 
the  residence  of  F.  Bates,  and  about  one  mile  and  a  quarter 
northeast  of  West  Spring  creek,  may  be  seen  a  fair  expos- 
ure of  rock  in  place  for  about  240'  above  water  level. 

Bluish  shale,  (at  the  top  as  far  as  seen,) 30' 

Thin-bedded,  shaly  sandstone,  50' 

Conglomerate,  fine-grained,  in  layers  2"  to  4  '  thick;  pebbles 

firmly  cemented,  apparently  by  some  lime-iron  solution,  .  2' 
Sandstone,  yellowish  brown,  fine-grained,  micaceous,  massive,  5' 
Shales,  bluish-gray,  argillaceous,  with  occasional  sandy  layers 

approaching  to  thin  sandstones, 150 

§  85.  Section  at  Johnson's  saw  mill,  on  West  Spring 
creek.  See  Fig.  B,  page  31. 

Top  of  observations  above  tide, 1477' 

1.  Shale,  (concealed  above,)     10'  to  1467' 

2.  Sandstone,  with  shale  partings,     6'  to  1461' 

3.  Shale,  brown,        3'  to  1458' 

4.  Sandstone,  in  thin  layers,     5'  to  1453' 

5.  Shale,  brown, 4'  to  1449' 

6.  Sandstone,  brown,  laminated, 2'  to  1447' 

7.  Shale,  brown  and  blue,     6'  to  1441' 

8.  Sandstone,  pebbly,  contorted,  coal  films,  '  .   .   .   .  2'  to  1439' 

9.  Sandstone,  brown 1'  to  1438' 

10.  Shale,  brown, 1'  to  1437' 

11.  Sandstone,  yellow,  rather  massive, 6'  to  1431- 

12.  Sandstone,  greenish,  soft,  friable,  almost  crumbling 

in  the  hand  when  wet.    This  sandstone  probably 


SECTION  AT  JOHNSON'S  SA  W  MILL.  III.  31 


Fig.  A. 
abr.  Garland. 


Johnsons  "Mill 


1428  Spring  Creek 


32  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

extends  below  water  level.  It  contains  many 
fossils,  among  which  Mr.  Hall  recognizes  San- 
guinolites,  Cardiomorp/ia,  and  Productella.  It 
also  smells  strongly  of  petroleum,  and  when 
crushed  and  dropped  into  water  the  iridescent 
colors,  which  constitute  a  "good  oil  show,"  are 

abundantly  manifest, 

13.  Water  level  below  mill  dam,  (above  ocean,)     .   , 

§  86.  False  coal.  — Several  hundred  dollars  have  been 
expended  here  in  a  vain  search  for  coal.  The  "coal  blos- 
som," which  was  supposed  to  lead  to  a  larger  deposit  be- 
neath the  hill,  was  seen  in  very  thin  films  in  the  outcrop- 
ping rocks  along  the  creek  bank,  at  1439'  in  the  section. 

Knowing  that  this  horizon  is  at  least  400  feet  vertically 
beneath  the  Garland  conglomerate,  it  needs  but  a  slight 
examination  of  the  situation  to  satisfy  one  that  the  ' '  blos- 
som" will  not  ripen  into  desirable  fruit. 

The  stratum  in  which  it  is  found  is  a  gnarled  conglomer- 
ation of  clay,  sand,  pebbles,  fossil  mollusks,  and  thin  masses 
of  carbonized  plants.  It  has  every  appearance  of  being  a 
sea-shore  drift  containing  just  sufficient  vegetable  matter 
here  and  there  to  form  slight  films  of  coal.  There  is  no 
under-clay,  and  no  indications  in  any  of  the  surroundings 
that  could  reasonably  warrant  the  expectation  of  finding  a 
paying  coal  bed.  It  is  merely  a  local  exhibition  of  vegeta- 
ble matter,  which  cannot  be  traced  far  in  any  direction. 

§  87.  Hosmer  run  oil. — The  sandrock  at  water  level,  1431' 
to  1428',  appears  to  be  deserving  of  more  attention.  From 
its  position  and  elevation  it  may  be  supposed  to  have  some 
connection  with  the  Hosmer  run  oil  rock,  the  ancient  oil- 
pits  along  that  stream  being  only  about  three  miles  to  the 
southeast.  This  exposure  may  possibly  represent,  also,  the 
northwestern  outcrop  of  the  First  oil  sand  of  Venango 
county.  Still  it  is  not  to  be  presumed,  judging  from  the 
experiences  of  operators  on  Hosmer  run,  in  1865,  that  the 
"oil  show"  here  will  lead  to  any  very  profitable  results. 

§  88.  Are  the  oil  sands  CJiemung  f — The  presence  of  car- 
bonized plants  and  films  of  coal  in  the  section  above  given 
is  good  evidence  that  coal  plants  were  flourishing  within 
reach  of  the  drifting  currents  at  the  time  these  strata  were 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  33 

forming;  and  it  would  appear,  also,  from  the  peculiar 
character  of  the  rock  containing  these  evidences,  that  it 
must  have  been  formed  along  the  margin  of  some  dry  land. 
If,  now,  this  sandstone  be  the  equivalent  of  the  First  oil 
sand,  these  facts  suggest  an  inquiry,  rendered  pertinent, 
also,  by  many  other  considerations  to  be  noted  hereafter : — 
Do  the  Yenango  oil  sands  belong  to  the  Chemung  period, 
or  are  they  of  more  recent  age  ? 

§  89.  On  McOlay  hill,  the  summit  between  Spring  creek 
and  West  Branch,  one  mile  southwest  of  West  Spring 
creek,  the  sub-Garland  yellow  sandstone  is  in  place,  but 
so  drift-covered  as  not  to  be  noticed,  except  in  sinking 
water  wells.  Large  gneissic  bowlders,  with  occasional  blocks 
of  sandstone,  lie  thickly  strewn  on  its  northeastern  slope. 

§  90.  Flsli. — Here,  in  a  bowlder  of  pea-conglomerate,  a 
good  specimen  of  CtenacantJius  triangularis  was  found  by 
Mr.  Hatch,  the  only  one  I  have  ever  seen  in  so  coarse  a 
conglomerate. 

The  county  line  (Warren- Crawford)  is  but  a  short  dis- 
tance west  of  this  hill. 


CHAPTER  IV.* 

The  Garland  conglomerate  and  underlying  measures  out- 
cropping in  Crawford  county — at  Bates'1  hill ;  South- 
wic7is  summit;  Hickory  corners ;  and  around  Mead- 
mile; — with  notes  upon  the  drift. 

§  91.  The  Survey  line.— Between  McClay  hill  and  Mead- 
ville  the  State  road  passes  over  but  two  or  three  elevations 
capped  with  the  sandstones  of  the  Garland  conglomerate, 
the  most  conspicious  outliers  being  found  a  short  distance 
to  the  south  of  it.  It  was  our  intention  to  run  side-lines 
to  connect  these  exposures  with  the  profile,  but  time  did 
not  permit.  There  is  sufficient  rock  in  place,  however,  near 
the  road,  to  assure  the  accuracy  of  general  results  ;  and 

*  Report  of  work  clone  iix  1875. 

3  III. 


34  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

where  the  sandstone  is  wanting,  or  its  exact  position  obscure, 
we  may  be  assisted  in  no  small  measure  by  a  study  of  the 
characteristics  of  the  landscape  around  us.  The  topography 
of  the  country  the  position  of  its  springs,  the  composition 
of  soil  and  the  species  of  indigenous  trees  growing  upon  it 
indicate  the  lines  separating  soils  derived  from  sandstone  and 
soils  derived  from  shale  almost  as  unerringly  as  any  system 
of  leveling  with  good  exposures  could  do ;  even  in  situa- 
tions where  considerable  bodies  of  drift  are  present. 

§  92.  Bowlders.  — All  across  Crawford  county  erratic  bowl- 
ders of  gneissoid  rocks,  from  2'  to  6'  in  diameter,  are  scat- 
tered along  the  road,  and  they  spread  out  to  the  south  as 
far  as  the  ridge  before  referred  to  as  the  southeasterly  water- 
shed of  Spring  creek  and  Hyde  creek.  Approaching  the 
Ohio  line  and  in  eastern  Ohio  they  become  more  rare.  Xo 
doubt  they  have  been  also  deposited  in  quantity  there  ;  but 
the  country  is  more  thickly  settled,  building  stone  is  not 
plenty,  and  they  have  consequently  been  broken  up  and 
removed. 

Sates-  hill. 

§  93.  About  one  mile  and  a  half  southeast  of  Spartans- 
burg,  near  the  residences  of  A.  Bates  and  J.  Eastman  a 
summit  rises  to  an  elevation  of  1800'  above  ocean.  Large 
blocks  of  conglomerate  and  sandstone  lie  scattered  on  the 
slope  facing  the  east,  and  smaller  ones  may  be  seen  on  the 
westerly  side  descending  toward  the  east  branch  of  Oil  creek. 
The  true  position  of  the  conglomerate  is  somewhat  obscure  ; 
but  the  yellow  sandstone,  here  a  flat  pebble  conglomerate, 
caps  a  large  portion  of  the  ridge.  It  is  found  in  water  wells 
and  the  outcrop  may  be  seen  along  the  road  coming  from 
the  east  about  45'  feet  below  the  summit.  In  several  places 
both  on  its  eastern  and  western  slopes  the  under-shales  are 
exposed  at  frequent  intervals,  being  plainly  of  the  same 
character  as  those  seen  at  this  horizon,  elsewhere  along  the 
line,  and  containing  similar  fossils. 

§  94.  From  Bates'  hill  towards  the  southwest  the  hilltop 
levels  fall  to  about  1600'  and  then  to  loOO'  or  less,  and  none 
of  the  ridges  passed  over  by  the  State  road  are  high  enough 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  35 

to  catch  the  conglomerate  until  the  College  Hill  ridge  east 
of  Meadville  is  reached.  We  are  compelled  therefore  to 
look  to  the  south  for  an  intermediate  exposure  to  make  the 
connection  more  continuous. 

SouthwicJi  s  summit. 

§  95.  Knob. — In  Richmond  township,  on  the  divide  be- 
tween Muddy  creek  and  Woodcock  creek,  two  miles  south 
of  New  Richmond,  rises  a  sharp  knob  of  sandstone,  the 
peak  covering  only  about  two  acres.  The  sandstone  is  very 
similar  in  appearance  to  the  Meadville  rock,  except  that  no 
pebble  stratum  is  exposed  in  place.  Ib  is  white  and  yellow, 
and  contains  small  concretions  of  iron,  by  which  it  is  .dis- 
colored in  some  of  its  members.  Three  or  four  massive 
layers  are  exposed,  having  a  thickness  in  all  of  about  30  feet. 

§  96.  fossils.— A  few  fragments  of  Sigillaria  and  some 
unrecognizable  impressions  of  matted  masses  of  long,  nar- 
row leaves  were  the  only  traces  of  fossils  seen. 

§  97.  Drift  Tieaps. — On  the  northerly  face  of  the  peak 
the  sandstone  has  been  so  cleanly  swept  away  that  its  pres- 
ence is  only  indicated  by  a  drift-covered  escarpment  show- 
ing no  traces  of  sandrock  upon  it.  But  on  the  south  the 
conditions  are  quite  the  reverse  ;  ledges  of  the  rock  are  ex- 
posed and  large  blocks  lie  scattered  over  the  surface  of  the 
slope,  down  to  the  stream  below. 

§  98.  Stoss  side  and  tailings. — These  facts  are  but  the 
repetition  here  of  notes  made  under  similar  circumstances 
in  many  other  places  ;  and  their  recurrence  so  often  in  my 
note-book  leads  me  to  confidently  expect  as  a  general  rule 
that,  where  a  hill  top  is  but  just  swept  bare  of  conglomerate, 
large  blocks  of  it  will  almost  Invariably  be  seen  on  the 
southerly  slopes,  while  very  few  will  be  found  on  the  north- 
erly. If  some  portion  of  the  conglomerate  is  still  in  place 
the  northern  face  will  be  abrupt  and  comparatively  free 
from  fragments,  the  southern  sloping  and  covered  for  a 
long  distance  below  the  ledge  with  broken  masses  from  the 
outcrop.  With  the  erratic  foreign  bowlders,  however,  the 
conditions  are  reversed ;  more  of  them  are  found  on  the 
northerly  slopes  than  the  southerly,  although  they  are  in 


36  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

some  situations  quite  thoroughly  intermixed  with  the  local 
sandstones.  Do  not  these  facts  point  to  the  probable  action 
of  the  same  agencies  in  both  caies  ?  Did  not  the  ice-cur- 
rents from  the  north  bring  down  these  erratics  to  be  strand- 
ed on  the  northern  slopes  at  the  very  time  they  were  dis- 
lodging and  slipping  the  local  sandrocks  to  the  south  ? 

Hickory  corners. 

§  99.  Knob. — Two  miles  and  a  half  southeast  of  Soutli- 
wick's  lies  another  sandstone-capped  hill  of  about  the  same 
elevation  of  summit.  It  is  on  the  west  side  of  Woodcock 
creek,  near  the  north  line  of  Randolph  township.  Xo  very 
noticeable  outcrop  occurs  here,  but  local  exposures  of 
coarse  yellow  sandstone  are  quite  frequent. 

§  100.  Coal. — About  30  feet  below  the  summit  a  seam  of 
coal  16  inches  in  thickness  is  reported  to  have  been  found. 
It  has  been  seen  in  a  number  of  water  wells,  and  is  said  to 
lie  in  the  sandstone  without  any  shale  or  clay  above  or  be- 
low it.  This  I  believe  is  the  most  northerly  point  in  Craw- 
ford county  where  coal  is  known  to  exist.  It  occurs,  how- 
ever, at  a  number  of  places  to  the  south,  in  Randolph,  Mead 
and  Wayne  townships,  but  in  no  locality  has  it  yet  been 
found  of  sufficient  importance  to  be  extensively  mined. 

Meadmlle. 

§  101.  College  Hill,  a  mile  and  a  half  northeast  of  Mead- 
ville,  contains  a  broad  thick  cap  of  conglomerate  and  sand- 
stone, the  highest  point  of  which  (at  Ellis'  quarry]  is  1558' 
above  ocean  level. 

The  elongated  summit,  from  its  northerly  slope  throws 
its  drainage  into  tributaries  of  Woodcock  creek,  and  from 
its  southerly  into  Little  Sugar  creek ;  while  to  the  west 
several  small  ravines  find  a  direct  outlet  into  French  creek. 
The  preservation  of  conglomerate  upon  it  no  doubt  is  due 
to  its  peculiar  situation  in  relation  to  the  denuding  currents 
which  have  so  cleanly  swept  the  country  to  the  east  and 
west  of  it. 

§  102.  In  ascending  this  ridge  from  Blooming  valley, 
the  State  road  rises  to  the  top  of  the  conglomerate  and 


GARLAND    CONGLOMERATE.  III.  37 

continues  above  it,  across  an  almost  level  plateau,  for  a  mile 
and  a  half,  until  the  westerly  slope  towards  Meadville  is 
reached.  To  the  southeast  the  conglomerate  extends  irreg- 
ularly, according  to  the  circumstances  of  erosion,  to  a  dis- 
tance of  perhaps  a  mile,  and  to  the  northwest  in  some  places 
nearly  as  far. 

§  103.  Quarries. — The  old  Ellis  qarry  (now  Thorp's)  is 
at  the  northeasterly  point  of  the  rock  ;  College  Hill  quarry 
(Carroll' s)  at  the  northwesterly  point ;  and  True1  s  quarry, 
near  the  State  road,  as  it  begins  its  descent  into  Meadville. 
Besides  these  well-known  openings,  the  rock  has  been 
worked  less  extensively  in  several  other  places. 

Ellis  or  Thorp  quarry. 

§  104.  From  this  quarry  the  stone  used  in  constructing 
the  new  court  house  at  Meadville  was  obtained. 

About  25'  of  rock  is  exposed,  and  the  bottom  has  not 
been  reached. 

The  upper  10'  may  be  called  a  ferruginous  sandstone ;  it 
contains  many  iron-nodules  and  clay-filled  cavities  coated 
with  iron,  among  which  are  remnants  of  Calamttes,  Lepi- 
dodendron,  Sigillaria,  and  also  imperfect  impressions  of 
broad  flat  leaves. 

The  under  part  is  more  homogeneous  in  structure,  and 
contains  less  iron,  which  is  evenly  disseminated  through  it. 

It  is  a  massive,  coarse-grained  sandstone  throughout,  but 
divided  into  bands  of  varying  thicknesses  by  well-defined 
lines  of  bedding,  which  are  beautifully  and  distinctly  rip- 
ple-marTced.  These  ripple-marked  su  -faces  are  generally 
oxydized  more  or  less,  and  the-furrovs  appear  to  run  at 
right  angles  to  the  dip  of  the  rock,  witich  is  to  the  south- 
southwest  as  nearly  as  could  be  ascertained  here  and  in 
the  other  quarries. 

The  color  of  the  rock  is  remarkable,  being  a  purplish- 
pink  and  yellow,  blended  in  clouded  or  watered  lines, 
making  when  dressed  a  style  of  graining,  as  it  were,  re- 
sembling that  of  chestnut  wood.  It  is  a  beautiful  stone 
when  first  worked,  but  weathers  dark  and  somewhat  rusty 


38  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

from  the  oxydation  of  its  contained  iron.  Still  it  is  dura- 
ble, and  highly  esteemed  for  architectural  purposes. 

No  conglomerate  layers  are  seen. 

Elevation  of  top  of  quarry,  1558'. 

§  105.  Glacial  scratches  were  noticed  at  this  quarry  (and 
again  o  .1  the  State  road)  running  in  a  southerly  direction, 
corresponding  with  the  trend  of  the  easterly  outcrop  of  the 
conglomerate. 

College  Hill  quarry,  (Carroll's.) 

§  106.  The  most  northwesterly  outcrop  of  conglomeritic 
sandstone  occupies  a  narrow  ridge,  on  each  side  of  which 
a  number  of  openings  have  been  made. 

Carroll''  s  quarry  lies  almost  at  the  extreme  point  where 
the  rock  shows  35'  thick. 

Elevation  of  the  top,  1530'. 

Here  it  is  a  massive,  yellowish  coarse-grained  sandstone, 
somewhat  discolored  by  iron,  and  irregular  in  constitution 
and  structure,  which  causes  it  to  quarry  in  cuneated  masses 
difficult  to  work,  and  entails  a  large  amount  of  wastage. 
Still,  when  the  rough  blocks  are  reduced  to  shape  they 
make  a  good  lasting  stone. 

Toward  the  bottom  of  the  ledge  are  layers  and  pockets 
of  conglomerate  which  are  sometimes  little  more  than  beds 
of  closely  compacted  pebbles,  readily  dug  up  with  a  pick, 
and  utterly  worthless  for  mechanical  purposes. 

§  107.  About  400'  in  a  southeasterly  direction  is  another 
opening,  showing  25'  of  massive  sandstone,  the  bottom  por- 
tion of  which  is  a  beautiful,  white,  even- textured  and  rather 
fine-grained  sandstone,  admirably  suited  to  monumental 
work.  Some  blocks  have  small  white  pebbles  sparsely  scat- 
tered through  them,  but  they  do  not  in  the  least  detract 
from  the  beauty  or  value  of  the  stone. 

§  108.  Beyond  this  a  few  hundred  feet  and  still  going 
southeast,  a  small  opening  shows  a  very  different*  and  quite 

*  It  will  be  observed  that  irregularity  of  structure,  variation  in  color  and 
rapid  changes  from  conglomerate  to  sandstone,  and  vice  versa — are  conspicu- 
ously shown  by  a  study  of  the  several  quarries  upon  this  ridge,  and  there  can 
be  little  doubt  but  that  similar  circumstances  have  conspired,  in  many  places, 
to  produce  similar  results,  in  all  the  sandy  members  of  the  carboniferous  age. 
The  pebbles  in  all  the  conglomerates,  here  are  of  the  ovoidal  type. 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  39 

inferior  rock,  it  being  in  some  parts  only  a  series  of  thin, 
warped  plates  of  micaceous  sandstone  from  half  an  inch  to 
two  inches  in  thickness  ;  and  all  of  the  rock  exposed  here 
is  obliquely  or  current  bedded  in  a  very  curious  manner. 

True 's  quarry. 

§  109.  On  the  southwesterly  brow  of  the  summit,  over- 
looking Meadville,  and  but  a  few  rods  north  of  the  Sta*te 
road,  a  very  good  and  accessible  rock  is  worked. 

It  is  a  massive  yellowish-white  sandstone,  sometimes 
clouded,  almost  free  from  pebbles,  and  works  easily  into  any 
shape  desired.  The  face  of  the  cutting  measures  12  feet, 
but  probably  the  bottom  has  not  been  reached. 

§  110.  Water-beds. — On  the  lot  of  Benjamin  Newell, 
across  the  road  from  Mr.  True' s,  and  at  an  elevation  of  10' 
above  the  top  of  the  quarry,  a  water- well  shows  the  follow- 
ing section : — Drift  clay  S' ;  coarse  yellow  sandstone  16'. 

At  a  depth  of  24'  a  horizontal  seam  was  found,  beneath 
a  thin  conglomerate,  containing  loose  pebbles  and  an  abund- 
ant supply  of  good  water.  As  this  well  is  not  far  from 
the  southwesterly  escarpment  of  the  conglomerate,  now 
obscured  by  drift,  it  may  be  presumed  that  these  crevices 
and  pebble-paved  water  courses,  owe  their  origin  to  a  slight 
displacement  and  slipping  of  the  rock  before  its  ragged 
edges  were  covered. 

Meadville  section. 

§  111.  A  section  made  at  Meadville,  descending  from 
Trues  quarry  by  way  of  the  ravine  east  of  Greendale  cem- 
etery, reads  as  follows  : 

Sandstone,  (exposed  top,1526',) 12  to  1514 

Concealed  to  ravine,     134  to  1380 

Shale,  bluish-grey 50  to  1330 

Sandstone,  thin-bedded, 5  to  1325 

Shale,  sandy, 5  to  1320 

Sandstone,  thin-bedded, 10  to  1310 

LIMESTONE,  sandy,  impure,  weathering  in  rectangular 

blocks  with  desquamated  edges,* 2  to  1308 


*  This  is  probably  J.  T.  Hodge's  limestone  referred  to  by  Prof.  Rogers  in 
Geol.  of  Penn'a,  1858,  Vol.  I,  page  584.  It  is  Mr.  White's  Meadville  limestone 
of  Report  QQQ,  note  p.  61. 


40  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHK  F.  CARLL. 

Sandstone,  blue,  in  layers  1"  to  2i"  thick, 5  to  1303 

Shale,  blue,  with  thin  layers  of  sandstone, 23  to  1230 

Concealed, 30  to  1250 

Sandstone  in  thin  plates, 5  to  1245 

Flags,  blue,  sandy, 5  to  1210 

Shale,  blue, 10  to  1230 

Concealed  to  railroad  level, 150  to  1080 

This  section  gives  a  fair  exhibition  of  the  general  char- 
acter of  the  strata  exposed  above  water  level  at  Meadville. 

In  traveling  up  and  down  the  ravines  in  the  neighborhood, 
no  good  and  continuous  exposures  can  be  seen,  but  we  get 
glimpses  here  and  there  of  a  few  feet  of  rock  in  place  at 
various  elevations,  and  may  judge  of  the  quality  of  the 
intermediate  strata  by  the  topography,  and  the  manner  in 
which  the  erosive  agents  have  worked  upon  them.  The 
arenaceous  limestone  was  not  noticed  in  any  other  locality 
than  the  above,  but  the  measures  at  this  horizon  give  evi- 
dences in  many  places  of  containing  a  greater  amount  of 
sandy  material  than  those  above  or  below  them. 

The  Sub-Garlandyellow  sandstone,  which  should  occupy 
the  interval  beneath  True's  quarry,  was  not  seen  in  the 
vicinity  of  Meadville,  unless  it  may  be  the  rock  exposed 
on  Kycenceeder  hill  west  of  French  creek.  A  very  hasty 
examination  of  this  point  left  it  in  doubt  whether  the 
stratum  seen  there  should  be  correlated  with  the  Garland 
conglomerate,  or  with  the  underlying  sandstone. 

Citizens'*  oil  well. 

§  112.  In  1872  a  well  was  drilled  for  oil  in  Meadville, 
located  between  North  street  and  Mill  run,  on  a  lot  belong- 
ing to  D.  Morris,  about  one  mile  southwest  of  True's  quarry. 

It  commenced  at  an  elevation  of  1135'  above  tide,  and 
was  driven  down  to  a  depth  of  1104',  or  to  within  31'  of 
ocean  level. 

No  detailed  register  was  kept,  for  the  reason  (as  stated 
by  the  drillers)  that  the  strata  were  so  homogeneous  that 
there  seemed  to  be  nothing  noticeable  to  record ;  but  Mr. 
Frederick  Metzer,  one  of  the  owners  and  managers,  con- 
firmed the  following  particulars  obtained  from  one  of  the 
men  who  worked  on  the  well : 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  41 

Conductor,  8'. 

Water  cased  off  effectually  at  108'. 

Gas  at  450'  in  sufficient  quantity  to  fire  the  boiler  during 
the  rest  of  the  drilling. 

Well  pumped  at  1000',  and  a  good  show  of  oil  obtained. 

Then  drilled  to  1104'  and  again  tested,  with  no  show  of 
oil.  Gas  considerably  weaker  on  the  last  test,  and  not 
enough  to  pump  the  well. 

The  drilling  was  "shelly"  down  to  450',  but  no  sand- 
stone (more  than  4'  thick)  was  passed  through  at  any  point. 

"Below  450'  nothing  but  soft  shale  and  slate — no  sand- 
stone— no  increase  of  gas — no  oil." 

§  113.  Fossils. — Mill  run  cuts  down  to  bed  rock,  oppo- 
site the  well,  and  flows  over  a  blue  sandy  shale,  in  some 
places  changing  into  warped  plates  of  false-bedded,  thin- 
bedded,  argillaceous  sandstone,  traversed  by  mud  furrows, 
thoroughly  ripple-marked,  and  containing,  in  somo  layers, 
fossils  in  great  abundance. 

§  114.  Supplementing  the  above  section  at  Cemetery  run 
with  these  facts,  obtained  from  the  oil  well,  we  may  get  a 
very  good  general  idea  of  the  character  of  the  measures  at 
Meadville  extending  down  1500'  below  the  conglomerate. 

Meadville  reservoir  Drift  deposits. 

§  115.  The  surface  of  the  country  about  Meadville  is 
covered  with  heavy  deposits  of  Drift,  even  to  the  tops  of 
the  hills,  and  many  rounded  and  smoothly  worn  Erratics 
of  metamorphic  rock,  from  2'  to  5'  in  diameter,  lie  scat- 
tered at  all  elevations  along  the  hillsides. 

§  116.  The  new  reservoir  is  located  on  one  of  these  drift 
deposits,  on  the  west  face  of  College  hill,  on  a  ridge  between 
French  creek  and  a  small  stream  which  rises  near  the  Car- 
roll quarries,  and  runs  in  a  southwesterly  direction  into 
Mill  run. 

It  is  said  to  be  315'  above  French  creek,  or  about  1385' 
above  ocean  level. 

The  excavation  was  made  20'  deep  in  a  clay  drift  thickly 
filled  with  gravel  and  bowlders,  the  bottom  being  blue  and 
black  clay,  with  occasional  small  fragments  of  rocks,  angu- 


42  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

lar  and  unworn,  and  evidently  of  local  origin,  as  compared 
with  those  in  the  upper  part. 

The  only  bed  rock  seen  was  a  blue  sandy  shale,  and  this 
was  just  touched  in  excavating  for  the  construction  of  a 
drain  from  the  bottom  of  the  reservoir  into  the  stream 
aforesaid. 

117.  The  following  notes  in  relation  to  the  Meadville  quar- 
ries were  made  by  Mr.  H.  M.  Chance  in  1877. 

True's  quarry,  12'  rock  exposed,  top  at 1526' 

College  Hih  quarry,  top  at       . 1530' 

35'  rock  exposed,:  contains  conglomeritic  patches  and 
layers.  Mainly  composed  of  massive  and  coarse,  yel- 
low sandstone,  to 1495' 

Quarry  300'  south  of  College  Hill  quarry,  top  at 1522' 

22'  rock  exposed,  viz: 

Coarse,  conglomeritic  sandstone, 12' 

Conglomerate, 3' 

Coarse,  greyish  sandstone, 7' 

—  22'  to  1500' 

Quarry  500'  E.  by  S.  from  College  Hill  quarry,  top  at .   .   .   .  1525' 
Sandstone  containing  layers  of  conglomerate,  .  10' 
Coarse,  grayish-yellow  sandstone, 8' 

—  18'  to  1507' 

The  rock  here  is  very  massive,  but  in  the  northwest  end  of  the  quarry  the 
bed  underlying  the  conglomeritic  portion  is  very  strongly  false-bedded.  The 
ialse-bedding  is  at  an  angle  of  about  30°  to  the  true  bedding,  but  the  false 
bedded  portion  is  not  separated  from  the  bed  above  by  any  bed-plate. 

Quarry  100'  E.  by  N.  of  latter  quarry,  top  of  rock, 1533' 

25'  rock  exposed,  to 1508' 

In  the  bottom  of  this  quarry  a  very  white  rock  was  found. 

Ellis  quarry,  top  of  rock, 1558' 

Coarse-grained  ferruginous  sandstone, 10' 

Tolerably  good  quarry  stone, 7' 

—  17'  to  1541' 

Garland  sandstone  in  Collega  hill, 40'  to  1495' 

? 168'  to  1327' 

Flaggy,  thin  bedded  sandstone  beds,  1"  to  3"  thick,    6' 

Massive  but  flaggy  sandstone, 2' 

? 8' 

Flaggy,  gray  sandstone 8' 

-  24' to  1303' 
? 223' to  1080' 

Railroad  level,  Meadville,  A.  and  G.  W.  K.  R 1080' 


CHAPTER  V.* 

The  Sharon  coal,  Garland  conglomerate  and  under -rocks, 
southwest  of  Meadville,  through  Crawford  county,  into 
Ohio. 

East  Fallowfield  township. 

§  118.  Southwest  of  Meadville,  the  broad  erosion  of  Con- 
neaut  outlet  has  left  little  to  note  in  connection  with  the 
conglomerate,  until  the  high  ground  which  forms  the  east- 
erly water-shed  of  Crooked  creek  is  reached. 

§  119.  Levels. — To  economize  time,  therefore,  we  inter- 
mitted levels  at  Meadville  and  commenced  again  at  Evans- 
burg  station  on  the  Atlantic  and  Great  Western  railway, 
two  miles  southeast  of  Conneaut  lake,  running  thence  south, 
for  5^  miles,  along  the  highway  passing  through  nearly  the 
centre  of  East  Fallowfield  township ;  and  then,  turning 
west  along  the  road  leading  directly  to  Atlantic  station. 

§  120.  Profile. — As  this  interval  contains  a  number  of 
quarries  and  coal  beds  of  special  importance  in  studying 
the  characteristics  of  the  lower  carboniferous  sandstones, 
we  give  a  profile  section,  to  assist  in  understanding  the 
notes  to  follow. — (See  Plate  3 A.) 

The  profile  is  drawn  on  a  north  and  south  line  which  would 
pass  very  near  to  all  the  quarries  and  coal  beds  mentioned, 
some  lying  a  little  to  the  right  and  some  a  little  to  the  left. 

Miller's  quarry. 

§  121.  This  is  the  starting  point  of  the  profile,  half  a  mile 
north  of  the  railway  station. 

*  Report  of  the  work  of  1875. 
(43  III.) 


44  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Elevation  of  top  above  ocean  1303'. 

Thickness  of  rock  quarried  more  than  15  feet. 

The  principal  part  of  the  stone  used  in  the  old  canal  con- 
structions at  the  foot  of  Conneaut  lake  was  obtained  here. 

Only  a  few  feet  of  soil  overlies  the  ledge,  which  forms  a 
broken  escarpment  of  considerable  length,  facing  the  west, 
and  thus  the  sandstone  is  very  accessible,  and  easily  wrought 
into  blocks  of  any  size. 

The  rock  is  rather  coarse  grained,  massive,  somewhat  ir- 
regularly bedded,  of  a  yellowish  color,  weathering  brown, 
and  contains  some  iron  concretions,  not  only  in  the  bedding 
and  seams,  but  in  the  solid  sand  also. 

§  122.  Fossils. — Near  the  top  is  a  stratum  a  foot  thick 
rich  in  fish  spines,  bones  and  teeth.  No  carboniferous  plants 
seen  and  no  conglomerate.  This  seems  to  be  the  Sub-Gar- 
land yellow  sandstone  stratum. 

§  123.  Coal  beds  are  noted  at  three  points  on  the  profile — 
on  the  Mushrush  farm,  1^  miles  southeast  of  Miller's  quarry  ; 
— on  the  McEntire  farm  1^  miles  south  of  Mushrush' s  ;  and 
'  on  the  Hazen  farm  2f  miles  south  of  McEntire' s.  At  none 
of  these  places  have  excavations  been  sunk  to  the  base  of 
the  sandrock  beneath  the  coal,  and  its  outcrop  lower  down 
the  hillsides  is  so  obscured  by  Drift  that  its  thickness  can- 
not be  definitely  stated. 

Mushrush  farm. 

§  124.  Coal  Pit  section,  on  the  east  side  of  the  road  nearly 
opposite  the  dwelling  house. 

Top  of  hill, 1336' 

Surface  soil,     1'  6" 

Sandstone, 7'  0" 

Shale,  fawn  color,  friable, 3'  6"  to  1324' 

Coal,  upper,  part  slaty, 3'  0"  to  1321' 

Fireclay,  indurated, 2'  0"  to  1319' 

Sandstone, thicknessunknown  but  bottomnot reached 
in  a  shaft  near  by  at  (1336-40,) 1296' 

§  125.  Quarry. — Many  years  ago  an  opening  was  made  a 
few  rods  east  of  the  coal-pit,  and  at  about  the  same  level. 
The  rock  was  found  to  be  not  as  good  as  Miller's  and  much 
harder  to  work.  It  is  a  white  hard  sandstone  full  of  con- 
torted masses  of  Catamites  and  other  carboniferous  plants. 


OAKLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  45 

It  is  said  that  thin  coal  beds  were  found  in  the  sandstone 
sometimes  pinching  out  between  two  layers  and  some- 
times stopping  abruptly  as  against  a  wall. 

The  rock  is  very  uneven  in  composition,  being  firm  and 
massive  in  one  place,  thin-bedded  and  broken  into  small 
blocks  in  another,  and  interlaminated  with  thin  seams  of 
coal,  fawn  color  shale  and  fireclay. 

§  126.  Boring  for  coal. — Twenty  or  thirty  rods  south  of 
the  quarry,  a  drill  hole  was  put  down  in  1845  to  a  depth  of 
45'  \  All  that  is  remembered  about  it  is,  that  thin  seams 
of  coal  were  passed  through  in  the  upper  part  and  that  ' '  the 
lower  part  was  not  satisfactory."  It  commenced  at  an  ele- 
vation of  1336'. 

§  127.  A  coal  sliaft,  was  also  sunk  in  this  immediate 
vicinity  at  about  the  same  time  and  from  the  same  eleva- 
tion, to  the  depth  of  40  feet  and  stopped  before  the  base  of 
the  sandstone  was  reached. 

' '  Thin  seams  of  coal  from  half  an  inch  to  one  inch  in  thick- 
ness were  found  at  intervals  all  through  the  sandstone." 

§  128.  The  sandrock  on  Mushrush's  hill,  where  these  tests 
for  coal  have  been  made,  lies  so  near  the  surface  in  many 
places  that  it  may  be  struck  by  the  plough  ;  but  to  the  south, 
between  this  ridge  and  McEn tire's,  it  is  cut  out  below  the 
level  of  the  coal-bearing  strata,  and  covered  by  from  10  to 
15  feet  of  drift  clay,  as  shown  by  the  water  wells. 

§  129.  Timber. — This  interval  is  a  wide  flat  swampy  plain 
occupied  in  part  by  very  remarkable  "timber  lots  "  in  which 
beech,  maple,  oak,  hickory,  ash.  chestnut,  cucumber,  white 
gum  and  other  trees  all  grow  together  with  equal  luxuriance. 

McEntirefarm. 

§  130.  Coal. — A  number  of  coal-pits  or  shafts  were  opened 
on  the  McEntire  property  as  early  as  1837,  and  considerable 
coal  was  taken  out  to  supply  the  surrounding  country  be- 
fore the  introduction  of  railroads  rendered  the  business 
unprofitable.  The  coal  was  mined  in  a  very  primitive  way. 
A  shaft  was  dug  six  or  eight  feet  square  and  the  coal  picked 
out  under  the  side  walls  in  all  directions  as  far  as  it  could 
be  safely  and  conveniently  reached,  when  it  was  abandoned 


46  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOH^  F.  CARLL. 

and  a  similar  one  sunk  a  short  distance  from  it.  Several 
acres  are  covered  with  these  old  pits,  long  since  fallen  into 
disuse,  and  only  the  weather-worn  fragments  of  there  fuse 
materials  thrown  out  can  now  be  seen. 

The  following  section  of  one  of  these  old  pits  represents 
as  nearly  as  can  now  be  remembered  by  the  owner  a  fair 
average  of  these  old  pits. — See  Fig.  A,  page  47 : 

Elevation  at  surface  above  ocean, 1349' 

Surface  clay, 3' 

Sandstone,  soft  and  broken  and  easily  removed  with  a 

pick, 17' 

Coal  slate,  micaceous, 1'  to  1328' 

Coal  of  good  quality, 3'  to  1325' 

Sections,  Figs.  B,  C,  D  and  E,  on  the  same  page  (47)  are 
from  pits  opened  further  to  the  east,  where  the  coal  lies 
nearer  the  surface. 

Section  C  is  from  a  shaft  sunk  for  a  water  well  near  Mr. 
McEntire's  house,  in  1874.  The  hole  was  about  8'  square. 
On  the  south  side  of  the  excavation  the  coal  measured  11 
feet  and  on  the  north  side  6  feet.  The  lower  6  feet  being 
good  block  coal,  the  upper  5  feet  laminated,  and  somewhat 
slaty,  lying  unconformably  upon  the  lower  bed  as  repre- 
sented in  the  section.* 

§  131.  Bowlders. — On  the  gentle  slope  to  the  northeast, 
and  below  openings  D  and  E,  many  large  blocks  of  sand- 
stone lie*  scattered  oVer  the  surface,  and  below  them,  in  the 
banks  of  a  run  emptying  into  Conneaut  outlet,  may  be  seen 
the  outcropping  under-shales. 

Jackson '  s  quarry. 

§  132.  About  a  mile  to  the  west  of  these  coal  beds  and 
belonging  to  the  same  horizon  of  sandstone  is  Jackson's 
quarry  from  which  is  obtained  an  excellent  stone  now  being 
extensively  used  by  the  A.  and  G.  W.  railway  for  the  en- 
gineering work  along  their  road. 

Unger's  hill. 
§133,  The  next  rise  of  ground  to  the  south  (elevation 

*  As  none  of  these  pits  are  now  open  the  sections  are  necessarily  made,  not 
from  personal  inspection,  but  from  information  derived  from  Mr.  McEntire. 


Plate  XXI. 


III.  47 


48  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

1348')  is  capped  with  sandstone ;  white,  massive,  fine-grained, 
free  from  iron,  and  with  a  layer  of  pebbles  on  top  from  half 
an  inch  to  ten  inches  in  thickness.  No  fossils  and  no  evi- 
dences of  coal  discovered. 

§  134.  Bowlders. — On  the  south  slope  of  Unger's  hill,  and 
fifty  feet  below  the  McEntire  coal,  lie  large  blocks  of  sand- 
stone, with  iron  balls  and  stains  similar  to  the  Miller  quarry 
stone.  These  are  probably  from  the  Sub-Garland  yellow 
sandstone  horizon,  while  the  white  sandstone  on  the  hilltop 
represents  the  Garland  conglomerate. 

§  135.  Along  the  stream  below  J.  Unger's  mill  may  be 
seen  an  outcropping  sandrock,  ten  feet  or  more  in  thickness, 
the  base  of  which  lies  70'  below  the  McEntire  coal.  This 
is  the  lowest  band  of  sandstone  in  place  noted. 

§  136.  Iron  ore. — Fifteen  feet  beneath  this  lie  thin  beds 
of  concretionary  iron  ore.  In  the  talus  of  the  cliffs  and 
wash  of  the  stream  may  be  found  many  masses  of  this  ore, 
having  the  appearance  of  fragments  of  bodies  and  branches 
of  trees,  crooked,  gnarled,  and  forked  in  a  very  curious 
manner.  A  sample  of  the  ore  sent  to  Greenville  furnace 
several  years  ago  was  said  to  have  yielded  a  large  per 
centage  of  iron ;  but  the  supply,  although  considerable,  is 
not  sufficiently  concentrated  to  make  the  mining  of  it  profit- 
able. 

McLanahart  s  quarry. 

§  137.  This  quarry  is  of  the  same  description  as  the  others 
along  this  ridge.  It  furnishes  both  white  and  yellow  sand- 
stone which  is  somewhat  irregularly  bedded  but  massive, 
and  contains  iron  concretions  and  a  few  pebbles  near  the 
top  of  the  mass. 

§  138.  Glacial  stria. — On  the  summit  and  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  southeast  slope  (elevation  1315')  are  a 
number  of  plainly  marked  glacial  grooves  on  the  rock,  run- 
ning in  directions  between  S.  37°  E.  to  S.  58°  E. 

Hazen  coal  mine. 

§  139.  About  two  miles  east  of  Atlantic  station  a  summit 
is  reached  which  rises  to  an  altitude  of  1413'  above  tide, 
being  the  highest  point  found  in  this  part  of  the  survey. 


GARLAXD  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  49 

§  140.  Coal. — This  ridge  contains  a  good  but  uncertain, 
seam  of  coal  which  has  been  exposed  on  the  northerly  side 
in  a  number  of  places  on  the  Hazen  farm  and  adjoining  Mil- 
ler farm.  Several  attempts  have  been  made  to  mine  coal 
here,  since  the  year  1851,  but  they  all  seem  to  have  ended 
disastrously. 

In  1864  or  1865  considerably  money  was  expended  at  the 
Ilazen  mine,  in  laying  a  tramway,  opening  a  drain  at  a  lower 
level  (which  was  rendered  necessary  by  the  strong  south- 
erly dip  of  the  coal)  and  making  the  needful  preparations 
for  a  systematic  working  of  the  seam.  It  was  operated  for 
about  two  years,  during  which  time  quite  a  large  amount 
of  coal  was  taken  out,  but  the  enterprise  proving  unprofit- 
able the  mine  was  abandoned.  The  drift  having  since  partly 
fallen  in,  and  the  drain  being  choked,  the  mine  is  so  full 
of  water  that  no  satisfactory  examination  can  be  made. 

The  coal  can  be  seen  slowly  dipping  to  the  south  and  run- 
ning below  water  level.  Its  thickness  is  from  2  feet  6  inches 
to  3  feet,  and  it  appears  to  be  of  good  quality.  But  the 
deposit  partakes  of  the  same  character  as  all  the  other  coals 
of  this  horizon.  It  lies  in  swamps  or  beds  of  uncertain 
limits  and  is  liable  to  thin  out  or  terminate  abruptly  any- 
where. But  as  the  mine  has  been  so  long  in  disuse,  little 
reliable  information  could  be  obtained  concerning  it. 

It  was  impossible  also  to  get  a  complete  section  of  tlie 
rocks  at  the  mouth  of  the  drift,  but  the  one  below  will  give 
some  idea  of  the  stratification. 

Concealed  from  surface,  (1413',) 38'  to  1375' 

Yellow  sandstone, visible  for  10' 

Black  shale, visible  for  4' 

Concealed  to  top  of  coal, 13'  to  1348' 

Coal, 3'  to  1345' 

Concealed,     .       7 

White  sandstone, visible  for  10'  to  1328' 

§141.  Borc-Jioles. — Many  of  the  land  owners  in  this 
neighborhood  have  entertained  the  idea  that  a  better  bed 
of  coal  would  be  found  by  shafting  below  the  Hazen  seam  ; 
and  to  test  the  matter  several  bore-holes  have  been  sunk. 
Mr.  0.  K.  Miller  gives,  from  memory,  the  following  frag- 
mentary facts  concerning  them. 
4  III. 


50  III.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

One  bore-hole,  45'  deep,  was  put  down  on  the  farm  of  T. 
J.  Miller,  a  little  west  of  the  Ilazen  mine,  commencing  just 
below  the  coal  horizon.  In  this  a  two  feet  seam  of  coal  was 
reported,  but  at  what  depth  could  not  be  stated.  This  was 
in  1848. 

In  another  bore-hole  sunk  from  nearly  the  same  level  and 
to  the  depth  of  85',  an  8-inch  seam  of  coal  was  said  to  have 
been  found  within  three  feet  of  the  bottom. 

Two  other  bore-holes  were  drilled  on  the  south  side  of  the 
ridge,  on  land  of  0.  K.  Miller,  "at  about  the  level  of  the 
cross-roads,"  (which  would  be  1363'  above  tide,)  one  45  feet 
deep,  and  the  other  87  feet.  Both  passed  through  thin 
seams  of  coal,  but  at  what  depth  can  not  now  be  remem- 
bered. 

The  records  of  these  drillings,  kept  only  in  memory,  are 
so  imperfect  that  we  did  not  think  it  worth'  while  to  make 
further  inquiries  about  them.  Such  fragmentary  accounts 
of  old  prospecting  ventures  are  more  likely  to  mislead  than 
instruct. 

§  142. — Dip  rate. — He f erring  to  the  profile,  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  Hazen  coal  bed  lies  20'  higher  than  McEn tire's,  and 
24'  higher  than  Mushrush's,  which  would  imply  (if  they 
all  belong  to  one  seam)  a  dip  toward  the  north  of  about  six 
feet  per  mile.  But  the  Hazen  mine  dips  so  strongly  to  the 
south  that  the  difficulty  of  drainage  was  one  of  the  causes 
of  its  abandonment.  It  is  an  open  question,  then,  whether 
these  several  coal  beds  lie  at  different  horizons  in  the  sand- 
rock,  or  whether  there  may  not  be  a  slight  anticlinal  be- 
tween the  Hazen  and  the  McEntire  openings. 

Henry1  s  run. 

§  143.  Eighty  rods  south  of  Atlantic  Station,  on  the  At- 
lantic and  Great  Western  railway,  along  the  banks  of  a 
small  stream  falling  into  Crooked  creek,  may  be  seen  a  par- 
tial exposure  of  measures  below  the  Garland  conglomerate. 
They  consist  of  blue  and  brown  slaty-shale,  inters tratified 
with  thin  plates  of  false-bedded  shaly  sandstone,  and  occa- 
sional lines  of  kidney  ore,  all  remarkably  non-fossil  if erous. 

§  143.    Drift.— While  along  the  high  ground  just  de- 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  51 

scribed  very  little  coarse  northern  drift  is  to  be  seen,  here, 
on  the  contrary,  it  appears  in  quantity,  as  if  driven  over 
the  comb  of  the  hill,  and  dropped  in  the  valley.  As  the 
stream  enters  these  drift-deposits  the  bottom-flat  widens, 
and  the  current  sweeps  from  side  to  side,  cutting  in  places 
down  to  bed-rock,  through  ten  feet  or  more  of  Drift,  so  im- 
pregnated with  iron  that  the  water- worn  material  of  which 
it  is  composed  has  nearly  all  of  it  a  rusty  cast. 

§  144.  Below  the  railway  embankment  crossing  Henry's 
run  the  stream  is  thickly  strewn  with  thin  plates  of  sand- 
stone, reddish,  fine-grained,  hard,  and  having  a  metallic 
ring  when  struck  with  the  hammer.  These  must  have  come 
down  from  the  upper  part  of  the  shales ;  for,  all  of  the 
rocks  exposed  directly  above  the  creek  bed,  and  along  its 
lower  cliffs,  are  of  soft  slate  or  shale,  and  some  of  them  are 
so  exceedingly  fissile  that  they  weather  down  into  thou- 
sands of  small  pieces.  These  lower  shales  are  also  discolored 
by  iron. 

Fiicoids  are  found  here,  with  wave-marks,  on  thin  sand- 
stones, and  long  branching  cores,  cast,  evidently,-  in  mud- 
grooves  upon  the  shore. 

Adamsmlle  quarry. 

§  145.  Crooked  creek  section. — The  next  exposure  of  sand- 
rock  to  be  noted  is  upon  the  hill  on  the  west  side  of  Crooked 
creek,  about  one  mile  west  of  Adamsville  ;  descending  from 
which  the  following  section  was  taken,  along  a  little  stream 
which  plunges  in  a  waterfall  over  the  quarry  rock,  and  then 
makes  a  rapid  descent  through  a  deep-cut  ravine  into  the 
valley  of  Crooked  creek. 

Elevation  of  top  of  exposure  above  ocean,  ....  1240 
Sandstone,  massive,  coarse,  yellow  and  white,  contain- 
ing iron  concretions  and  clay  balls, 8  to  1232 

Shale,  blue,  friable,       2  to  1230 

Sandstone,  thin  bedded,  and  dark  shale,  warped  and 
irregular,  in  layers  half  an  inch  to  six  inches  thick, 

and  containing  impressions  of  plants,     5  to  1225 

Shale,  blue,  sandy,  friable, 35  to  1190 

Sand  plates,  thin,  with  shale  partings, 10  to  1180 

Shale,  blue  friable, 40  to  1140 

Sandstone,  yellow,  thin  bedded,     5  to  1135 


52  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

Sandy  shale,     20  to  1115 

Shale  interstratified  with  thin  sand  banks, 30  to  1085 

Shale,  blue,  friable,  with  an  occasional  thin  layer  of 

flaggy  sandstone, 35  to  1050 

Concealed  to  water  of  Crooked  creek, 54  to    996 

A  few  fossils  were  found  here,  as  Productus,  Amculo- 
pecten,  Strophomena,  Spirifer,  and  Fucoids. 

Snodgrass  ore  bank. 

§  140.  About  half  a  mile  west  of  Adamsville  quarry  the 
summit  of  the  ridge  between  Crooked  creek  and  the  She- 
nango  is  reached  at  an  altitude  of  1360'  above  ocean,  and 
on  the  commencement  of  the  western  slope,  30'  below  the 
crest,  lies  the  Snodgrass  ore  bank,  on  the  farm  of  J.  M. 
and  Robt.  Snodgrass. 

This  is  a  rich  deposit  of  iron  ore  1  foot  C  inches  in  thick- 
ness, in  basin  shape  sloping  on  all  sides,  but  of  nearly  uni- 
form thickness  over  quite  a  large  area  in  the  centre. 

Extensive  operations  were  carried  on  here  in  ISou,  and 
large  quantities  of  ore  were  taken  out  and  delivered  by  teams 
to  the  furnace  at  Greenville.  It  was  worked  profitably  by 
stripping,  being  covered  by  only  about  9  feet  of  surface 
clay  and  3  feet  of  black  bituminous  shale;  but  the  losses 
incurred  by  the  failure  of  the  parties  contracting  for  the 
ore  caused  mining  to  be  suspended.  No  doubt  large  quan- 
tities of  the  ore  still  remain  under  the  hilltop. 

§  147.  Coal. — In  digging  a  drain  from  this  bank  a  thin 
seam  of  coal  is  said  to  have  been  discovered.  Indications 
of  coal  are  also  vaguely  reported  in  several  other  places  on 
the  summit. 

Christy  s  quarry. 

§  147.  This  quarry  lies  a  mile  and  a  half  north  of  Snod- 
grass's  ore  bank  and  at  an  elevation  which  fixes  its  horizon 
at  the  latter  place  beneath  tJie  ore. 

White,  irregularly  bedded,  coarse-grained  sandstone  is 
exposed  for  10',  but  no  doubt  it  extends  down  deeper,  and 
the  top  has  evidently  suffered  some  erosion  at  the  quarry. 
The  rock  fractures  quite  irregularly,  but  works  easily  when 
first  quarried,  and  hardens  on  exposure  into  a  firm  and 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  53 

durable  stone.  Contorted  masses  of  carboniferous  plants 
occur  in  some  parts  ;  a  few  iron  concretions  and  numerous 
clay -ball  pockets  are  seen,  but  no  pebbles. 

§  148.  The  knob  containing  the  sandstone  is  the  highest 
in  the  vicinity,  and  covers  an  area  of  perhaps  100  acres. 

§  149.  Glacial  scratches. — On  its -gentle  southwest  slope 
a  portion  of  the  top  of  the  rock  can  be  seen,  polished  and 
grooved  by  glacial  action  in  a  direction  corresponding  to 
the  contour  of  the  surface. 

§  150.  The  ice  conformed  to  tlie  present  topography. ~ -It 
may  be  remarked  here  in  relation  to  these  striated  rocks,  a 
number  of  which  have  been  previously  mentioned,  that 
— while  the  grooves  all  have  a  trend  pointing  plainly  to 
to  a  general  movement  of  the  sculpturing  agent  toward  the 
south  or  southwest — they  at  the  same  time,  as  far  as  my 
observation  goes,  conform  universally  in  detail  to  the  out- 
lines of  the  present  topography  of  the  country  wherever 
they  are  found.  For. example,  on  the  point  of  a  ridge  fall- 
ing on  one  side  to  the  southeast  and  on  the  other  to  the 
southwest,  the  direction  of  the  furrows  will  vary  according 
to  the  slope  of  the  surface  rock.  It  would  appear  then 
that  these  groovings  are  not  the  inscriptions  made  by  the 
early  glaciers,  moving  slowly  and  undeviatingly  along  their 
track,  but  those  of  more  recent  and  thinner  ice-sheets  which 
split  upon  the  resistant  headlands  and  were  deflected  to  the 
right  and  left  along  the  valleys,  which  therefore  must  have 
been  shaped  then  substantially  as  they  are  at  the  present 
day. 

Snodgrass  quarries. 

§lil.  Jamestown  section. — On  the  W.  J.  Snodgrass  farm 
one  mile  N.  E.  of  Jamestown  and  just  beyond  the  north- 
east angle  of  the  borough  limits,  the  upper  part  of  the  fol- 
lowing section  was  taken,  and  it  is  connected  with  Dr.  Gib- 
son's oil  well  record,  near  the  base  of  the  hill,  in  James- 
town ;  thus  exhibiting  the  general  features  of  stratification 
at  tliis  point  throu<:;h  a  vertical  distance  of  1283'  and  down 
to  a  level  4.'  below  the  surface  of  the  ocean. 


54  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F-  CARLL. 

Elevation  of  top  of  quarry  above  ocean, 1278 

Sandstone,  coarse-grained,  friable,  brown- 
ish yellow,  containing  many  fish  re- 
mains,    1  to  1277 

Snodgrass      Sandstone,  false,  bedded,  laminated,  yel- 

Upper       ,      low 4  to   1273 

quarry.        sandstone,  blue,  flaggy, 5  to  1268 

Sandstone,  micaceous,  slaty,  thinly  lami- 
nated full  of  carbonaceous  specks  and 

l_     carbonized  coal  plants, 2  to  1266* 

Partly  concealed,  irregularly  bedded,  flaggy,  fucoidal 

sandstones  exposed  at  frequent  intervals, 41  to  1225 

( Sandstone,  massive,  yellow,  containing  a 
Snodgrass     |      few  jron  concretions,  and  broken  frag- 

quarry.      |      ments  of  plants, 6  to  1219 

^Sandstone,  in  layers  from  1"  to  3'  thick,     6  to  1213 
Partly  concealed,  (see  explanation  below), 140  to  1073 

Christ  v  run  1 

and 

Gibson  well  J>  Sandstone,  flaggy,  (see  below),     ....    12  to  1061 
mouth       j 
quarry.      ) 

[Continue  down  with  Dr.   Gibson's  oil  well  record, 
published  in  I.I.,  with  the  2?o.  1187.} 

Slate,  soapstone,  and  hard  shells, 90  to  971 

Sandstone,  fine-grained,  blue, 20  to  951 

Slate,  blue,     65  to  886 

Sandstone,  whiter  than  the  above  (thickness  estimated,)  25  to  861 

Slate,  blue, 90  to  771 

Sandstone,  coarse  and  pebbly, 18  to  753 

Slate  and  soapstone,  soft, 92  to  661 

Red  rock  and  hard  shale, 100  to  561 

Hard  sandy  slate, 50  to  511 

Black  slate, 200  to  311 

Black  slate,  no  sand, 315  to  — 4 

§  152.  On  Cliristy  run. — Following  down  a  small  stream 
(called  above  Christy  run,)  which  falls  over  the  lower  mem- 
ber of  Snodgrass  quarry  and  runs  in  a  southerly  direction 
into  the  Shenango,  the  measures  are  not  very  well  exposed  ; 
but  occasional  glimpses  caught  of  them  in  the  side  w  ils  of 
the  ravine  are  sufficient  to  satisfy  one  that  they  are  a  com- 
paratively homogeneous  mass  of  sandy  shale  similar  to 
those  seen  below  the  Adamsville  quarry. 

§  153.  Cliristy  run  quarry. — In  this  ravine  at  a  vertical 
distance  of  140'  (by  barometer)  below  the  Snodgrass  Lower 
quarry  another  quarry  is  worked  which  shows  a  face  of 
about  12',  and  furnishes  a  bluish-grey,  flaggy,  sandstone 
some  layers  of  which  are  locally  from  8  to  10  inches  thick. 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  Ill,  55 

The  same  sandy  band,  but  not  so  well  defined  may  be  seen 
just  at  the  mouth  of  Dr.  Gibson's  oil  well  and  again  along 
a  little  run  north  of  the  well. 

§  154.  Fossils. — Mr.  J.  Dennison  who  has  taken  out  a 
large  quantity  of  stone  from  the  exposure  in  the  ravine, 
states  that  he  found  large  numbers  of  fossils,  principally 
Discina  and  Spirifer,  near  the  base  of  the  rock  ;  some  line 
specimens  of  which  he  kindly  donated  to  the  survey.  We 
did  not  discover  any  colonies  of  fossils  at  this  horizon,  but 
obtained  several  single  specimens. 

§  15,1  Gibson' s  oil  well. — The  record  of  Dr.  Gibson' s  well 
was,  unfortunately,  not  kept  with  sufficient  care  to  give  us 
a  faithful  representation  of  the  strata  passed  through.  The 
so-called  Third  sand  is  no  doubt  correctly  located  (as  to 
depth)  in  the  section  ;  but  the  positions  of  the  other  sands 
are  somewhat  uncertain ;  and  the  quality  of  intermediate 
strata  is  very  vaguely  stated.  If  this  so-called  Third  sand 
really  belongs  to  the  Yenango  oil  group  it  probably  repre- 
sents not  the  Third  but  the  First  sand  on  Oil  creek. 

The  distance  from  the  Snodgrass  lower  quarry  down  to  it 
is  442  feet ;  which  agrees,  approximately,  with  the  corre- 
sponding interval  as  measured  in  Yenango  county.  But 
this  of  itself  is  not  sufficient  to  prove  its  identity  with  the 
First  Sand  of  Yenango  county.  It  may  be  a  different  rock, 
not  at  all  connected  with  the' Yenango  group.  The  question 
could  only  be  satisfactorily  settled  by  a  careful  examina- 
tion of  the  character  of  the  measures  above  and  below  it  in 
the  well ;  but  as  the  sand  pumpings  were  not  preserved,  this 
of  course  cannot  be  done.  I  therefore  give  the  section,  as 
above,  merely  to  show  the  general  character  of  the  lower 
measures  in  this  part  of  my  survey. 

J.  II.  Christy1  s  quarry. 

§  150.  Snodgrass  Lower  quarry  rocJc. — About  a  mite  and 
a  half  east  of  Jamestown  and  one  mile  south-southeast  of 
the  Snodgrass  quarry  there  is  a  very  good  exposure  of  the 
Snodgrass  lower  quarry  rock.  It  may  be  seen  in  two  places 
just  above  the  forks  of  a  little  stream  flowing  into  the  She- 
nango,  and  about  half  a  mile  north  of  the  highway. 


56  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

The  following  is  the  section  at  that  point : 

Elevation  of  top  rock  above  ocean  (barometer),  ....  1190   . 

Sandstone,  yellow  and  grey,  sometimes  massive  and  in 
layers  from  2'  to  3'  thick;  quite  coarse-grained,  iron- 
stained,  and  containing  many  impressions  of  carbo;.- 

ized  plants, 8  to  1182 

Sandstone,  thin-bedded  (plates,  1"  to  8"), 12  to  1170 

Shale,  blue,  visible  for 10  to  1160 

Concealed, 10  to  1150 

Shale,  blue, 45  to  1105 

Sandstone,  flaggy,  visible  for 1   .  10  to  1095 

/Survey  continued. 

§  157.  From  Jamestown  southwest  our  levels  were  con- 
tinued to  the  dividing  ridge  between  the  Shenango  and  Py- 
matuning,  &tKi,nney's  Corners  (cross  roads)  in  the  extreme 
northeastern  corner  of  Trumbull  county,  Ohio.  The  high- 
est point  (hill  top)  in  this  vicinity,  a  short  distance  south  of, 
and  30'  higher  than  Kinney's  cross-roads,  has  an  altitude 
above  tide  of  1191'. 

§  158.  No  sandrock  was  seen  in  place  here,  everything 
being  completely  covered  with  Drift ;  but  the  indications 
are  that  this  little  rise  in  the  general  level  of  the  crest  marks 
the  horizon  of  the  Snodgrass  lower  quarry  rocJc. 

§  159.  Conglomerate. — Sweeping  around  at  Kinney's  Cor- 
ners from  southwest  to  west  no  deposit  of  conglomerate  can 
be  reached  within  a  distance  of  about  30  miles.  Every  vest- 
age  of  it  has  been  removed  from  all  the  northwestern  town- 
ships of  Trumbull  county,  Ohio  ;  although  it  remains  in 
great  thickness  in  the  eastern  tier  of  townships  of  Geauga 
and  Portage  townships. 

We  must  look  to  the  south,  then,  along  this  Pymatuning- 
Shenango  ridge  for  the  connection  of  our  GARLAND  CON- 
GLOMERATE with  the  OHIO  CONGLOMERATE  and  our  Sub- 
Garland  yellow  sandstone  with  the  SJienango  sandstone. 

§  l6o.  Ohio  conglomerate. — The  first  prominent  exposure 
of  Ohio  conglomerate  is  at  Hobarf  s  quarry  in  the  south- 
east corner  of  Kinsman  township,  about  4  miles  south  of 
Kinney's  Corners. 

Half  a  mile  southeast  of  this  at  Foulke1  s  quarry  in  Mercer 
cer  co..  Pa.  a  higher  stratum  of  sandstone  is  exposed  which 


GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  57 

is  probably  the  one  lying  above  the  Orangeville  coal  beds 
further  south. 

Mr.  Foulke  has  drilled  here  .for  coal  and  find  a  10'  sand- 
stone 95  feet  below  the  quarry  rock  which  seems  to  be  the 
Shenango  sandstone.  This  sandstone  is  also  exposed  in  a 
small  stream  falling  into  Booth  run  about  a  mile  and  a  half 
south  of  Mr.  Foulke' s. 

A  mile  and  a  quarter  southwest  of  this  point,  and  two 
miles  north  of  Orangeville,  both  the  Conglomerate  and  She- 
nango  sandstone  outcrop  one  above  the  other  in  the  cliff 
facing  the  Pymatuning. 

About  two  miles  east  of  these  outcrops  the  Sharon  coal 
is  mined  quite  extensively. 

Tims  the  GARLAND  CONGLOMERATE  may  be  traced  step  by 
step  until  it  is  found  coalescing  with  the  Oino  CONGLOMER- 
ATE beneath  the  Sharon  or  Block  coal.  It  is  unnecessary 
to  go  further  into  details  in  this  report  of  my  work  of  1875 
since  Prof.  White's  systematic  survey  of  Mercer  county  in 
1878  (See  Report  QQQ,  already  published)  fully  confirms 
and  establishes  the  connection. 


CHAPTER  VI.* 
On  Hie  Panama  conglomerate. 

§  161.  This  conglomerate,  which  takes  its  name  from  the 
place  of  its  best  exposure,  in  the  village  of  Panama,  Chau- 
tauqua  county,  N".  Y.  appears  to  have  a  considerable  range 
of  exposures  in  a  northeast-southwest  direction. 

But  at  right  angles  to  this  line  of  its  best  development — 
that  is  in  a  southeast  direction — it  seems  to  dip  rapidly  be- 
neath the  general  level  of  the  country,  to  lose  its  conglom- 
eritic  character,  and  by  reason  pf  a  great  acquisition  of 


*  Report  of  work  done  in  1875. 


58  II].     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

argillaceous  material,  soon  becomes  unrecognizable,  (even  as 
a  well  pronounced  horizon  of  sandy  shale, )  where  .pierced 
by  borings  for  oil. 

§  162.  The  Panama  conglomerate  has  often  been  men- 
tioned by  geologists,  in  the  same  category  with  the  con- 
glomerates of  Ellicottville  or  Salamanca,  Olean,  Wellsville, 
or  Genesee,  and  Quaker-Hill  or  Garland. 

Consequently,  it  has  been  represented  lying  at  the  base 
of  the  coal  measures  ;  which  conveys  an  entirely  wrong  im- 
pression of  its  true  age  and  stratigraphical  position. 

§  163.  On  the  other  hand  also,  the  Panama  conglomerate 
has  been  frequently  referred  to  as  a  Chemung  rock ;  and 
also  as  the  northerly  outcrop  of  one  of  the  Yenango  oil 
sands. 

The  first  classification  is  unquestionably  erronious  ;  and 
there  are  grave  reasons  for  doubting  whether  the  latter  be 
absolutely  correct. 

§  164.  As  the  rock  can  only  be  properly  studied  along  its 
outcrop,  we  have  been  compelled  to  trespass  upon 'New  York 
territory,  and  devote  some  time  to  an  examination  of  its 
exposures  in  Chautauqua  county,  in  order  that  we  might 
become  acquainted  with  its  character  and  position  there, 
and  thus  be  better  qualified  to  follow  it  in  its  southern  ex- 
tension into  our  own  State. 

But  this  examination  has  not  been  thorough  enough  to 
dispel  entirely  the  obscurity  which  surrounds  the  subject, 
and  I  am  still  unable  to  indicate  positively  the  precise  hor- 
izon of  this  interesting  deposit  in  our  oil  well  sections; 
and  chiefly  for  the  reason  before  stated,  viz :  that  it  fines 
down  into  shale  and  is  lost  before  reaching  the  oil-produc- 
ing districts. 

§  165.  The  facts  about  to  be  given,  however,  lead  clearly 
to  the  folloAving  conclusions : — 

1.  That  it  is  an  older  rock  than  the  conglomerates  of 
Olean,  Garland,  &c.,  and  therefore  is  not  of  carboniferous 
age. 

2.  That  although  actually  of  Chemung  age,  it  probably 
is  not  the  equivalent  of  any  one  of  the  oil-producing  sand- 
stones of  Yenango  county,  lying  much  deeper  in  the  series. 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  59 

Panama  rock  city. 

§  1GG.  At  Panama  a  north  and  south  ridge,  rising  on  the 
west  of  Little  Brokenstraw  creek,  and  containing  the  rock 
in  place,  is  cut  through  by  a  branch  heading  in  the  high- 
lands to  the  northwest. 

This  branch  seems  to  have  formerly  plunged  over  the  face 
of  the  escarpment  of  sandstone  forming  the  west  wall  of 
the  valley  of  the  Little  Brokenstraw ;  but  it  has  now  cut 
back  a  gorge,  half  a  mile  or  more  long. 

At  the  present  head  of  the  gorge  the  waterfall  is  quite 
inconsiderable,  except  in  times  of  freshets,  and  the  descent 
over  the  ledge  of  pebbly  sandstone  is  made  in  two  leaps, 
with  a  sloping  cascade  between.  The  bed  of  the  ravine  is 
crooked  and  obstructed  by  large  blocks  of  conglomerate 
dropped  from  the  nearly  vertical  side  walls  of  the  gorge. 

It  is  a  picturesque  spot,  p resenting  attractive  features  to 
the  lover  of  romantic  scenery  ;  and  it  opens  to  the  student 
of  nature  instructive  pages  in  the  physical  history  of  the 
globe,  both  as  to  the  attitude,  structure,  and  constitution  of 
this  remarkable  deposit  of  ancient  gravel  and  sand  ;  and  as 
to  the  fossil  forms  of  life,  which  are  in  great  abundance,  en- 
tombed in  it,  as  well  as  in  the  shales  underneath  it. 

§  167.  Level  above  tide. — To  place  its  elevation  above  tide 
beyond  question  a  spirit-level  line  was  run  from  grade  at 
Grant  station,  on  the  Atlantic  and  Great  Western  railway, 
to  the  top  of  the  rock,  near  the  "Rock  Hotel,"  Panama. 
The  rise  was  found  to  be  234'.  This,  added  to  the  altitude 
of  Grant  station,  (1437',  as  given  in  the  R.  R.  levels,)  gives 
1G71/  as  the  true  elevation  of  the  top  of  the  Panama  rock 
above  mean  ocean  level,  at  this  point. 

§  1GS.  Thickness. — On  the  northerly  side  of  the  ravine, 
a  short  distance  from  "Rock  Hotel,"  the  base  of  Hue  con- 
glomerate is  well  exposed  by  a  cutting  for  a  mill  Hume. 

Leveling  to  this  point  made  the  rock  69'  thick. 

§  169.  Under-sJiales.—llvYQ  the  rock  is  seen  resting  on 
bluish-green  shales,  very  argillaceous  and  considerably  dis- 
colored by  iron.  About  25'  of  these  shales  are  exposed  ; 
and  beneath  them,  for  25'  more,  (which  carries  us  down  to 


60  III.    -REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

the  level  of  the  stream,)  may  be  observed  other  blue  shales, 
much  more  sandy  than  the  first,  irregularly  bedded,  and 
containing  several  bands  richly  stored  with  fossils. 

§  170.  The  shape  of  the  pebbles. — The  Panama  rock  may 
be  described  as  a  massive  conglomerate  composed  of  quartz 
pebbles  and  sand  ;  the  proportion  of  sand  to  pebbles  being 
much  larger  than  in  many  of  the  purely  conglomeritic 
masses  of  northwestern  Pennsylvania.  The  pebbles  whether 
large  or  small,  are  almost  always  of  lens  shape.  They  sel- 
dom measure  an  inch  in  their  longest  diameter  ;  but  one 
may  occasionally  be  found  measuring  an  inch  and  a  half  or 
even  two  inches.  They  are  generally  of  a  very  pure  white 
quartz,  but  some  are  pink  ;  and  quite  frequently  one  may 
be  observed  of  red  or  slate  colored  jasper. 

One  of  the  first  things  which  attracted  my  attention  while 
examining  the  Panama  rock,  was  the  marked  contrast  in 
form  between  the  pebbles  composing  it  and  those  of  the 
Pennsylvania  conglomerates  whicli  I  had  been  studying. 

In  these  last  as  far  as  I  have  observed  them,  the  pebbles 
are  universally  of  an  irregularly  spJieroidal  sliape ;  Avhile 
in  the  Panama  rock  the  pebbles  are  as  characteristically 
lentiforrn  ;  a  spheroidal  pebble  being  as  much  an  exception 
to  the  general  rule  at  Panama,  as  a  lenticular  pebble  is  at 
Lottsville  or  Garland. 

Whether  this  diversity  in  the  shape  of  the  pebbles  amounts 
to  positive  proof  that  the  rocks  belong  to  different  ages  or 
horizons  I  do  not  pretend  to  decide.  But  it  seems  quite 
improbable,  to  say  the  least,  that  two  conglomerates  so  en- 
tirely dissimilar  in  structure  and  in  the  shape  of  the  peb- 
bles composing  them,  as  the  lock  at  Lottsville,  and  the  rock 
at  Panama,  separated  also  as  they  are  by  a  geographical 
interval  of  less  than  ten  miles,  should  be  deposited  by  the 
same  mechanical  agents,  and  at  the  same  time. 

Certainly  the  shape  of  a  pebble  must  depend  not  only 
upon  its  constitutional  structure,  but  also  in  great  measure 
upon  the  manner  in  whicli  the  frictional  forces  have  acted 
upon  it.  If  it  has  been  constantly  subjected  to  a  rotary  or 
rolling  motion,  it  would  assume  a  spheroidal  form-if  abraded 
by  sliding  and  alternate  movements  backward  and  forward. 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  61 

without  rolling,  it  must  take  on  the  lens-shape.  But  we 
may  ask  if  these  varying  conditions  prevailed  contempo- 
raneously in  these  two  localities  so  close  together,  and  formed 
such  different  kinds  of  conglomerate  in  one  and  the  same 
horizon,  why  should  not  similar  conditions  have  occurred 
and  produced  as  conspicuously  varied  results  in  other  places  ? 
I  am  not  aware  that  there  can  be  found  in  the  whole  range 
of  the  Conglomerate  series,  a  single  instance  where  a  flat 
pebble  conglomerate  of  the  constitution  of  the  Panama  rock 
is  interstratined  with  the  round  pebble  conglomerates  char- 
acteristic of  the  carboniferous  age. 

It  seems  quite  probable  that  the  original  structure  of  the 
q;iartz  may  have  had  something  to  do  with  the  ultimate 
shape  of  the  pebble  ;  for  in  the  flat  pebble  rocks  of  Chemung 
and  Pocono  age  the  material  has  a  tendency  to  a  lamelate 
fracture  ;  while  the  rounded  pebbles  of  the  Pottsville  period, 
break  up  into  more  approximately  cuboidal  masses. 

I  merely  call  attention  here  to  these  facts,  for  their  sig- 
nificance can  only  be  properly  understood  after  the  subject 
has  received  further  investigation. 

§  171.  Alternate  layers. — The  rock  at  Panama  is  made 
up  from  top  to  bottom  of  alternating  layers  of  sandstone 
and  conglomerate  blending  one  with  the  other  as  the  pro- 
portions of  sand  and  pebbles  varied  intermittently  during 
the  deposition  of  the  materials  composing  the  rock.  Fre- 
quently a  layer  of  pebbles  consisting  of  only  one  course 
may  be  seen  running  horizontally  for  rods  along  the  face  of 
the  cliff.  The  pebbles  lie  flat,  and  the  sandstone  having 
weathered  away  from  above  and  below  them,  their  project- 
ing edges  jut  out  and  glisten  in  the  sunlight  like  a  string 
of  beads  suspended  in  front  of  the  sandstone. 

In  some  cases  two  or  three  courses  of  pebbles  in  imme- 
diate contact  have  been  deposited  between  purely  sandg- 
lasses, a  foot  or  more  in  thickness.  Several  blocks  with 
this  structure  have  fallen  from  the  cliff  in  such  a  manner  as 
to  split  open  along  the  line  of  pebbles,  exposing  two  plane- 
surfaces  of  sand-stone  beautifully  inlaid  with  a  wonderfully 
regular  and  uniform  stratum  of  lenticular  pebbles.  The 
whole  aspect  of  the  rock  suggests  the  story  of  a  gravel  heap 


62  III  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHX  F.   CARLL. 

along  an  ancient  shore  reached  by  occasional  storms,  the 
waves  of  which  have  washed  into  the  beach,  the  "back 
tow"  bringing  out  and  distributing  the  pebbles  systemati- 
cally over  a  smooth  and  sandy  floor. 

§  172.  Fallen  blocks  ;  fissures. — The  disintegration  of 
the  soft  shales  at  the  base  of  the  conglomerate  lias  under- 
mined it.  Long  ranges  of  rock  have  broken  off  in  the  lines 
of  cleavage  (which  here  run  about  X.  00°  W.)  and  settled 
away  one  after  the  other  from  the  undisturbed  portion  be- 
hind them,  leaving  a  series  of  fissures  from  2  to  10  feet 
wide  separating  the  several  portions  one  from  the  other. 

These  fissures  are  about  40  feet  apart ;  and  the  detached 
projecting  portions  of  rock  are  traversed  by  a  secondary 
series  of  transverse  crevices,  and  thus  split  up  into  huge 
blocks,  70  or  80  feet  long.  Some  of  the  blocks  along  the 
front  of  the  escarpment  have  slipped  down,  rolled  over, 
and  now  lie  near  the  bed  of  the  stream,  50  feet  below. 

All  the  rock  cities  of  southern  New  York  and  northwest- 
ern Pennsylvania  have  been  formed  in  a  similar  manner. 
Many  of  them  are  situated  on  the  highest  hilltops,  but  they 
are  always  composed  of  rocks  in  situ.  They  have  neither 
been  brought  from  a  distance  ;  nor  have  they  been  thrown 
up  to  their  present  position  (as  popularly  imagined)  by 
"convulsions  of  nature."  Their  formation  has  been  as 
slow  and  quiet  as  the  operations  of  frost  and  water  amid 
which  we  live.  They  are  merely  the  last  remnants  of  thick 
and  extensive  deposits  of  coarse  sandstone  that  once  covered 
the  country,  and  are  now  everywhere  else  removed.  Their 
preservation  from  the  destructive  erosion  which  has  been 
going  on  constantly  for  an  untold  number  of  ages,  removing 
rock  after  rock  above  them,  and  carving  out  the  valleys 
hundreds  of  feet  deep  below  them,  must  be  ascribed  to  one 
of  two  causes,  or  to  both  combined :  either  to  their  peculiar 
position  in  relation  to  the  eroding  currents,  and  to  the  fact 
that  some  great  change  in  the  direction  and  energy  of  these 
currents  occurred  at  just  the  proper  time  to  leave  the  rocks 
thus  exposed  to  view ;  or  to  the  peculiaf  constitution  of 
the  deposit,  its  superior  thickness,  coarseness,  homogen- 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.   63 

eousness,  and  consequent  power  of  resistance,  in  those 
parts  of  it  now  occupying  these  positions. 

Range  of  exposures. 

Taking  Panama  now  as  a  central  point,  let  us  trace  the 
conglomerate  and  see  what  is  its  probable  stratigraphical 
position  in  the  geological  series ;  in  what  direction  it  ap- 
pears to  thicken  or  thin  ;  how  it  dips  and  what  changes  of 
constitution  or  character  it  undergoes  in  the  several  places 
where  it  may  be  examined. 


§  174.  BlocJcmlle  or  AsTimlle  exposure. — Going  to  the 
northeast,  the  first  exposure  found  is  on  Stony  ridge,  about 
a  mile  and  a  half  north  of  Blockville  and  two  miles  north- 
west of  Ashville. 

Here  the  rock  assumes  a  mixed  character.  Some  parts 
are  masses  of  pebbles  loosely  held  together  in  a  scanty 
sandy  matrix,  easily  disintegrated  by  moisture,  frost,  and 
heat  on  exposure  to  the  atmosphere,  and  utterly  unfit  for 
architectural  purposes. 

Other  positions  afford  a  beautiful  white  and  brownish- 
grey  sandstone  suitable  for  monumental  bases,  lintels,  or 
any  similar  work. 

The  precise  thickness  of  the  whole  stratum  was  not  as- 
certained, but  it  can  hardly  be  less  than  fif ty  feet. 

Elevation  (by  barometer)  of  assumed  base  of  rock  1660'. 


§  175.  Ellory  Centre. — Continuing  to  the  northeast,  we 
cross  Chautauqua  lake,  and  find  the  last  traces  of  the  rock 
(in  that  direction)  in  loose  pieces,  but  apparently  very  near- 
ly in  situ,  on  the  highest  hills  around  Ellory  Centre. 

Elevation  by  barometer  1750'. 

Huge  erratic  bowlders  of  gneissic  rock  are  thickly  strewn 
over  the  hill  slopes  (especially  the  slopes  facing  the  north) 
to  within  40  or  50  feet  of  the  highest  summits. 


64  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

Beyond  this  in  the  same  northeast  direction  there  are  no 
hills  high  enough  to  hold  the  rock.  If  it  even  were  depos- 
ited there,  it  has  been  eroded  off. 


§  170.  Williams'  quarry,  on  the  westerly  slope  of  a  hill 
four  miles  north  from  Panama,  has  been  worked  for  more 
than  forty  years,  furnishing  stone  for  the  Mayville  court- 
house ;  and  from  layers  which  seem  to  be  those  at  the  base 
of  the  Panama  deposit. 

The  rock  is  a  fine-grained,  free- working,  grey  sandstone, 
splitting  smoothly  and  easily ;  and  readily  wrought  into 
fence  posts,  or  into  square  blocks  of  almost  any  desired 
length.  The  upper  pebbly  strata  are  not  present  at  the  quar- 
ry. The  lower  compact  sandstone  layers  of  the  formation 
underlie  a  large  area  covered  by  only  a  few  feet  of  surface 
clay ;  and  the  upper  rock  surface  beneath  this  clay  is  in 
many  places  plainly  glaciated,  the  direction  of  the  ico 
scratches  being  here  nearly  north  and  south. 

Elevation  (by  barometer)  of  base  of  quarry  1660'. 

On  the  rise  of  the  hill  30  or  40  feet  above  the  quarry,  con- 
glomerate precisely  similar  to  Panama  rock  city  may  be 
seen  in  place. 


§  177.  Lewis  quarry. — Half  a  mile  west  of  Williams'  lies 
the  Lewis  quarry ;  and  at  many  other  places  in  this  vicinity 
the  rock  could  be  easily  quarried.  The  character  of  the 
stratum  is  the  same  throughout,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt 
of  its  equivalence  to  the  Panama  rock. 


§  178.  CJtaulauqua  quarry.— Near  Panama  station  on 
the  Buffalo,  Corry  and  Pittsburg  railroad,  five  miles  west 
of  Panama  village,  Messrs.  Warren  and  Hammond  of  May- 
ville have  opened  a  quarry  calling  it  by  the  above  name. 

It  furnishes  a  fine-grained,  compact,  bluish-buff  sand- 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.   65 

stone  containing  minute,  evenly  disseminated  specks  of 
iron ;  dresses  very  smoothly  ;  is  said  to  weather  without  dis- 
coloration, and  to  be  very  strong  and  durable. 

The  stratum  worked  is  about  12  feet  thick.  Below  it  are 
blue  clayey  shales ;  above  it  thin  bands  of  flat  pebbles 
loosely  held  in  a  sandy  matrix  and  iron-stained.  Probably 
much  more  conglomerate  of  a  massive  character  lies  above 
these  thin  bands  since  loose  blocks  are  seen  on  the  slopes 
of  the  hill. 

The  bed  of  the  rock  dips  very  strongly  in  a  north  north- 
easterly direction  as  shown  by  the  water  on  the  bottom  of 
the  quarry  ;  but  this  may  be  only  a  local  feature  which  will 
not  continue  when  the  quarry  is  worked  further  in. 

A  branch  railroad  is  laid  up  to  the  opening  from  the  B. 
C.  and  P,  R.  R.  and  they  have  now  every  facility  for  quarry- 
ing and  shipping  an  excellent  material  for  monument  cut- 
ters and  builders. 

Elevation  of  base  of  quarry  about  1600'. • 

Other  exposures  in  Chautauqua  county  might  be  men- 
tioned, but  as  they  are  all  on  the  same  range  of  rock  and 
these  are  sufficient  for  our  purpose  we  now  pass  on  into 
Pennsylvania. 

The  Panama  rock  in  Pennsylvania. 

§  179.  BleaJcsley  quarry.— Passing  the  State  line  and  pur- 
suing a  southwest  course  the  observer  finds  the  surface  of 
the  country  heavily  covered  with  northern  Drift,  and  very 
few  attempts  have  been  made  to  discover  the  underlying 
building  stone  deposits. 

On  the  Bleaksley  farm,  however,  3  miles  south  of  Watts- 
burg,  Erie  county,  a  quarry  has  been  opened,  exposing 
about  15  feet  of  sandstone  and  conglomerate.  The  con- 
glomerate is  of  flat  pebbles,  often  thinly  bedded  and  split- 
ting in  layers  from  six  to  twelve  inches  thick.  Some  of  the 
more  sandy  layers  are  quite  massive  and  work  up  into  good 
building  stone. 

§180.  A  drill  hole  for  oil  was  here  ".kicked  down"  a 
hundred  feet  or  more  about  the  year  1864.  It  commenced 
in  the  quarry-opening  seven  feet  below  the  top  of  the  rock 
5  III. 


66  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

and  is  said  to  have  gone  through  60  feet  of  sandstone  at  the 
top.  If  this  be  true  there  must  be  a  heavy  deposit  at  this 
point,  and  the  base  of  the  rock  would  lie  at  an  elevation  of 
about  1340'. 

§  181.  Large  blocks. — Two  miles  south  of  Bleaksley's, 
the  same  kind  of  conglomerate  and  sandstone  lie  scattered 
along  the  foot  of  the  hills  skirting  the  westerly  side  of 
Beaver  run  indicating  close  proximity  to  the  rock  in  place. 

§  182.  Anotlier  exposure  of  the  rock  occurs  about  three 
miles  southwest  of  Bleaksley' s  on  the  farm  of  Mr.  Doolittle, 
where  it  is  laid  bare  by  a  small  stream  falling  into  the  west 
branch  of  Le  Boeuf  creek,  showing  a  thickness  of  about 
15  feet  and  quite  similar  in  appearance  to  the  quarry  last 
noted.  Elevation  of  base  by  aneroid  1330'. 

§  183.  Oil  well. — Mr.  Doolittle  furnishes  from  memory, 
the  following  record  of  an  oil  well  drilled  here  in  1860 : 

Sandstone,  (bottom  layer  of  quarry  rock), 2  to      2 

"Soapstone,"  ' 40  to    42 

Shelly  sandstone, 88  to  130 

Slate  and  shale,  rather  hard  drilling 470  to  600 

Gas  and  oil  show  all  through  the  88'  of  shelly  sandstone. 
Oil  of  heavy  gravity — translucent  and  very  clear  "looked 
like  honey." 

Between  200'  and  300'  a  restricted  gas  reservoir  was  tapped 
which  flowed  strongly  for  two  hours  and  then  ceased. 

The  well  was  drilled  wet  and  abandoned  without  pump- 
ing. Drill  hole  4£  inches  in  diameter. 

§  184.  The  next  quarries  of  importance  are  those  situated 
in  the  southeast  corner  of  Waterf ord  township,  Erie  county, 
on  the  adjoining  farms  of  J.  W.  Middleton  and  J.  McClel- 
land. They  have  been  worked  for  many  years  and  are  men- 
tioned in  Prof.  Roger' s  Final  Report  of  1858  as  being  of 
considerable  note  when  the  first  geological  survey  was  made. 

§  185.  The  Middleton  quarry  is  now  worked  principally 
for  its  flags.  It  turns  out  some  very  fine  slabs  of  bluish- 
grey  sandstone  from  3  to  5  inches  thick,  which  find  a  ready 
market  as  they  are  well  adapted  for  sidewalks,  curbing,  &c. 

A  section  of  this  quarry,  from  the  top  down,  would  be  as 
follows : 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  67 

Flat  pebble  conglomerate,  irregular,  false  bedded  and  contain- 
ing many  fossils, 2' 

White  sandstone  quite  massive,      2' 

Bluish-grey  flags  in  layers  from  3  to  5  inches  thick, 4' 

Flaggy  measures  said  to  underlie  the  band  now  being  worked,  15'  ? 

No  systematic  quarrying  lias  been  done  to  make  it  abso- 
lutely certain  that  there  remains  15  feet  more  of  flags  below 
the  4'  band  now  worked. 

The  barometric  elevation  of  the  conglomerate  is  1275'. 

§  186.  Moravian  or  Carroll  quarry. — The  last  ledge  of 
this  rock  in  a  southwest  direction  is  at  the  old  Moravian 
quarry  near  Le  Boeuf.  Here  some  fine  building-stone  is 
obtained,  and  being  on  the  line  of  the  Atlantic  and  Great 
Western  railway  and  only  a  few  feet  above  railroad  grade, 
it  is  easily  shipped  to  all  parts.  Consequently  the  quarry 
is  more  extensively  worked  than  any  of  those  previously 
mentioned,  except  perhaps  the  Chautauqua  quarry. 

The  section  exposed  here  is  as  follows,  from  top  down : 

Fossiliferous  sandstone,  crowded  with  spinfers  and  ryncho- 

nellas, 2' 

Blue,  friable  shale, 15' 

Flat  pebble  conglomerate,  containing  fossils  and  similar  to 

Middletown  quarry, 2^' 

Barometric  elevation  of  conglomerate, 1220' 

"Yellowish  sandstone,  with  pebbles  in  seams  and  pockets,  .   .  2^' 

White,  massive  sandstone, 5' 

Yellow,  massive  sandstone, 6' 

Average  fall  per  mile. 

§  187.  We  have  now  followed  the  Panama  conglomerate 
for  about  35  miles  in  a  southwesterly  direction ;  from  its 
scattered  remnants  on  the  highest  hilltops  in  the  centre  of 
Chautauqua  county,  N".  Y.  to  its  last  appearance,  a  few 
feet  above  the  waters  of  French  creek  in  the  southern  part 
of  Erie  county,  Pennsylvania. 

The  difference  in  altitude  between  the  points  of  starting 
and  ending  is  1750' — 1220'=  530' : — an  average  fall  of  about 
15  feet  per  mile. 

This  rate  of  descent  carries  it  down  below  the  surface  to 
the  southwest  of  Le  Boeuf,  (if  it  continues  on  in  that  direc- 
tion,) and  we  get  no  further  traces  of  it. 


68  III.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHIS"  F.   CARLL. 

Influence  on  the  topography. 

§  188.  It  is  worthy  of  passing  note  that  this  range  of  the 
Panama  conglomerate,  probably  the  line  of  its  maximum 
development,  crosses  Chautauqua  lake  at  the  "narrows;" 
and  the  peculiar  "saddle-bag"  outline  of  the  lake,  which 
is  said  to  have  suggested  its  Indian  name,  Chautauqua,  is 
no  doubt  due  to  this  fact. 

A  stratum  of  massive  sandstone  interbedded  between 
softer  measures  and  coming  up  from  the  south  with  a  very 
perceptible  rate  of  ascent,  could  not  fail  to  be  influential 
here  in  lining  out  the  drainage  channels  of  the  pre-glacial 
system,  as  well  as  in  directing,  locally,  the  flow  of  the  great 
glaciers  themselves. 

From  Chautauqua  lake  to  Le  Boeuf,  a  high  range  of  hills 
marks  the  trend  of  the  Panama  conglomerate  and  forms 
the  water  shed  for  streams  flowing  in  opposite  directions. 
One  branch  of  French  creek  rises  to  the  north  of  the  ridge 
and  within  five  miles  of  Chautauqua  lake  ;  another  branch 
to  the  south  of  it,  near  the  east  line  of  Erie  county,  Pa.  ; 
the  two  streams  running  southwesterly,  and  gradually  con- 
verging, as  the  conglomerate  sinks  in  that  direction,  until 
they  meet  near  Le  Boeuf,  where  the  rock  has  lost  much  of 
its  massive  character,  is  thin,  and  lies  not  far  above  the 
flood  plain  of  the  creek. 

The  southerly  water-shed  of  the  ridge,  in  Chautauqua 
county,  drains  quite  directly  south,  through  numerous 
tributaries  of  the  Brokenstraw  creeks ;  but  the  deeply  ex- 
cavated basin  of  Chautauqua  lake  cuts  entirely  through 
the  range,  and  receiving  the  water  from  several  small  streams 
rising  on  the  great  divide,  within  five  miles  of  Lake  Erie, 
outlets  toward  the  east  into  Conewango  creek.  The  only 
cuts,  therefore,  through  the  ridge  are  on  the  southwest, 
where  the  Panama  conglomerate  is  thin  and  has  sunken 
nearly  to  present  water  level ;  and  on  the  northeast,  where 
it  is  coarse  and  friable  and  is  seen  just  scaling  the  tops  of 
the  highest  hills  now  remaining  in  the  vicinity  of  Chautau- 
qua lake. 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  69 

Quarries  in  Erie  and  Crawford. 

§  189.  Many  quarries  have  been  opened  in  these  counties, 
to  the  northwest  of  the  range  of  the  Panama  rock  as  we 
have  traced  it.  Some  of  them  have  been  wrought  for  years, 
supplying  building  stone  for  the  villages,  and  dressed  blocks 
for  the  old  canal  locks,  so  frequently  mentioned  in  the  Final 
Report  of  the  First  Geological  Survey. 

An  examination  of  a  large  number  of  these  quarries  has 
led  to  the  conclusion  that  none  of  them  can  certainly  be 
classified  with  the  Panama  conglomerate.  They  belong  to 
no  one  constant  horizon,  but  lie  at  various  levels  in  the 
softer  measures  ;  and  are  due  to  comparatively  local  causes 
operating  during  the  deposition  of  the  rocks,  and  resulting 
in  an  intermittent  and  varying  supply  of  fine  sandy  sedi- 
ments carried  along  to  be  deposited  at  one  time  in  this 
place,  at  another  in  that. 

The  variable  character  of  these  strata  is  clearly  indicated 
in  the  Final  Report  of  1858,  Vol.  2,  page  583,  where,  speak- 
ing of  the  numerous  quarries  of  this  section,  it  says  :  ' k  The 
thickest  arenaceous  beds  measure  in  some  places  12  or  15 
inches,  and  where  a  number  of  them  occur  together  with 
only  thin  partings  of  shale,  the  mass  is  quarried  as  a  build- 
ing material.  It  is  seldom  possible  to 
trace  a  particular  stratum  of  the  sandstone  for  any  consid- 
erable distance,  for  the  beds  soon  thin  oif,  or  deteriorate  for 
economical  uses,  by  becoming  too  argillaceous,  and  thus 
they  fade  into  the  great  body  of  the  formation." 

An  inspection  of  the  old  canal  locks,  now  fallen  in  decay, 
and  many  of  them  being  torn  out  for  the  purpose  of  secur- 
ing the  dressed  stone  for  other  uses,  shows  that  some  of  the 
material  of  which  those  in  this  section  of  the  country  were 
constructed  is  not  of  an  enduring  quality.  A  majority  of 
the  blocks  have  weathered  badly,  some  presenting  de- 
squamated faces  and  rounded  corners,  while  other  have  a 
tendency  to  split  into  thin  laminae,  causing  them  to  fall  to 
pieces  in  removal,  and  are  fit  only  for  rough  walls.  These 
characteristics,  so  entirely  dissimilar  to  those  pertaining  to 
more  massive  formations  like  the  Panama  conglomerate,  are, 
aside  from  other  considerations,  trustworthy  witnesses  in 


70  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F    CARLL. 

favor  of  the  argument  that  the  quarries  furnishing  the  ma- 
terial do  not  belong  to  the  Panama  horizon. 

Panama  fossils. 

§  190.  One  of  the  exceptional  features  of  the  Panama 
rock,  as  compared  with  other  conglomerates,  is  the  great 
abundance  of  fossils  found  associated  with  it,  and  even  in 
the  pebble-mass  itself.  A  large  number  of  specimens  have 
been  collected  from  it,  embracing — 

Euomphalus   depressus.  *      Rhynchonella. 

Cypricardia    rJiombea.  Productus. 

"  contracta.  Fucoids. 

Spirifer  disjunctus. 

At  Williams  quarry  a  small  fragment  of  fisli  bone  was 
found  ;  and  at  Chautauqua  quarry  several  casts  of  plants, 
too  imperfect  to  be  identified, — one  of  them  two  inches  in 
diameter  and  over  two  feet  long — coated  with  a  thin  film  of 
coal  containing  iron  pyrites. 

Associated  Strata. 

§  191.  Let  us  now  look  at  the  associations  of  the  Panama 
conglomerate. 

The  measures  below  it  come  up  to  daylight  and  spread 
out  over  all  the  belt  of  country  between  the  line  we  have 
followed  and  the  shore  of  Lake  Erie.  They  have  been 
recognized  on  all  hands  as  of  Devonian  age,  and  those  im- 
mediately under  the  conglomerate  as  a  portion  of  the  Che- 
mung  group,  as  indicated  by  James  Hall,  in  1843.  There 
can  scarcely  be  a  question  raised,  therefore,  in  relation  to 
the  age  of  these  lower  measures. 

§  192.  But  the  equivalence  of  the  measures  above  the 
Panama  rock,  by  reason  of  confounding  this  conglomerate 
with  the  conglomerates  at  the  base  of  the  coal  measures, 
has  been  brought  into  dispute. 

Within  three  miles  of  Panama,  in  going  south,  south- 
west, and  west,  we  may  pass  over  and  inspect  from  125  feet 
to  225  feet  of  the  softer  measures  superincumbent  on  the 
conglomerate.  They  can  be  critically  examined  in  many 
exposures  in  this  locality,  and  always  present  the  well- 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  71 

known  characteristic  features  of  the  Chemung  group — blu- 
ish-green, olive,  and  brown  shales,  with  occasional  local 
acquisitions  of  sandy  matter,  resulting  in  restricted  and 
irregular  bands  of  thin-bedded,  flaggy  sandstones. 

They  also  contain  frequently  recurring  fossil  bands 
crowded  with  Spirifera,  Rhynclionella,  &c.;  forms  which 
seem  to  be  identical  with  those  found  in  similar  fossil  bands 
below  the  conglomerate.  There  are  no  massive  sandstones  ; 
and  nothing  to  indicate  that  any  of  the  great  changes  had 
yet  occurred  which  are  so  plainly  recorded  in  the  character 
and  arrangement  of  the  sediments  composing  the  oil  pro- 
ducing rocks  of  Yenango  and  those  above  them.  There 
seems  to  be  no  good  reason,  therefore,  why  these  upper 
measures  should  not  be  considered  as  belonging  to  the  same 
Chemung  age  as  those  immediately  below  the  conglomerate. 

Dip  and  physical  changes  in  the  Panama  rock,  going 
south. 

§  193.  Little  Brokenstraw  creek  flows  in  a  southerly  di- 
rection from  Panama,  crossing  the  State  line  about  five 
miles  below  the  village,  and  continuing  on  13  miles  further, 
empties  into  the  Big  Brokenstraw  at  Pittsfield  in  Warren 
county,  Pennsylvania. 

Following  down  the  stream  for  two  or  three  miles  from 
Panama  the*presence  of  the  Panama  rock  is  plainly  marked 
in  several  places  on  the  west  side  of  the  valley,  by  steep 
bluffs  which  indicate  unmistakably  the  position  of  the 
stratum  although  it  is  so  drift-covered  that  no  exposures 
are  seen. 

But  at  a  point  a  little  over  three  miles  (in  a  direct  line) 
from  Panama,  the  "Eureka  oil  well,"  put  down  in  1869  (?) 
gives  the  position  of  the  rock  beyond  a  question. 

§  194.  Eureka  well. — The  record  can  now  only  be  obtained 
from  memory,  and  the  precise  depths  and  thicknesses  of 
the  different  strata  drilled  through  cannot  be  stated  in  de- 
tail ;  but  the  general  facts  are  these.  The  drill  started  on 
top  of  the  Panama  conglomerate.  It  passed  through  sand- 
stone or  sandy  measures  from  60  to  80  feet  thick.  Then 
came  an  interval  of  blue,  muddy  rocks  ;  then  a  heavy  stratum 


72  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

of  very  red  shale ;  then  soft  drilling,  with  some  thin,  fine 
sand-shells  ;  and  finally,  quite  a  coarse  massive  sandrock 
18  feet  thick,  which  seemed  to  contain  considerable  oil. 
The  drill  was  sunk  in  slate  15'  below  this  sandrock,  and 
stopped  at  a  depth  of  456  feet  from  the  surface. 

On  the  test  of  the  well  it  produced  only  a  "good  show" 
of  oil  and  was  abandoned. 

One  remarkable  feature  about  the  well  was,  that  without 
casing  of  any  kind  to  keep  out  the  water,  it  was  virtually 
a  dry  hole — all  the  water  seeping  into  it  from  the  upper 
rocks  could  be  bailed  out  in  a  few  minutes  at  any  time  with 
a  sand-pump. 

§  195.  In  this  record  we  have  two  important  facts  to  work 
upon — the  top  of  the  conglomerate  and  the  presence  of  red 
rock  beneath  it  and  not  far  below  its  base. 

As  to  the  conglomerate,  there  can  be  no  mistake.  Its 
pebble-covered  top  is  visible  at  the  well  mouth  and  in  the 
bed  of  the  little  side-hill  gully  in  which  the  well  is  located. 
Lower  down  in  another  gully  branching  to  the  west,  the 
water  is  seen  coming  over  sandy  layers  in  water-falls,  and 
the  structure  can  be  well  observed.  The  rock  is  not  homo- 
geneous and  massive  throughout,  as  at  Panama,  but  con- 
sists of  quite  a  massive  stratum  of  pebble-sand  on  top, 
then  fine  greyish  sandstones  in  layers  from  6  to  15  inches 
thick.  There  appears  to  be  several  bands  of  these  thin 
sandstones,  separated  by  thin,  soft,  greenish  shales,  and 
the  total  thickness  of  the  whole  mass  exposed  cannot  be 
more  than  25'.  But  there  may  possibly  be  sandy  shells  ex- 
tending down  further,  as  would  seem  to  be  indicated  by  the 
well  record. 

Elevation  of  well  mouth  and  top  of  conglomerate  1569'. 

Top  of  same  rock  at  Panama  1671'. 

Fall  per  mile  nearly  due  south  about  32'. 

§  196.  No  further  exposure  of  this  rock  in  place  was 
found  south  of  the  well.  But  on  the  farm  of  Mr.  E.  Bord- 
well,  about  one  mile  south  of  the  State  line  and  on  the  west 
side  of  Little  Brokenstraw  valley  a  very  interesting  exhi- 
bition of  conglomerate  occurs  in  loose  blocks  covering  per- 
haps 40  or  50  acres  of  ground  at  an  elevation  of  about  30' 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  73 

above  the  creek  bottom.  At  first  sight  they  have  the  usual 
appearance  of  blocks  of  this  character  skirting  an  outcrop. 
They  lie  at  proper  level  to  correspond  with  the  dip  brought 
down  from  Panama  through  the  Eureka  oil  well,  and  it  can- 
not be  positively  asserted  that  they  are  not  in  close  prox- 
imity to  the  rock  in  place. 

But  here  we  are  met  by  a  difficulty.  If  the  conglomerate 
be  in  place,  it  is  much  more  massive  and  ponderous  than 
anything  discovered  about  the  Eureka  well,  and  it  is  very 
surprising  that  no  traces  of  it,  even  as  a  thin  bedded  sand- 
stone, was  found  in  the  Lottsmlle  oil  well,  3  miles  down 
stream  ;  and  that  no  other  outcrop  of  it  is  known  on  either 
side  of  the  valley  south  of  the  State  line. 

A  study  of  the  surrounding  country,  however,  afforded 
a  plausible  account  of  the  presence  of  the  blocks  in  this 
place.  They  lie  on  the  west  side  of  the  stream,  at  a  point 
where  there  has  evidently  been  a  moraine,  or  Drift-dam, 
across  the  valley,  in  precisely  the  spot  where  they  would 
naturally  have  been  deposited  if  brought  down  by  ice  from 
the  hills  at  the  north.  The  moraine  has  since  been  cut 
through  by  the  stream,  leaving  a  vertical  wall  of  20'  to  30' 
of  Drift  on  its  easterly  bank,  and  these  conglomerate 
masses  intermixed  with  erratic  bowlders  of  gneissic  rocks 
on  the  west. 

I  am  not  certain  that  this  is  the  true  solution  of  the 
problem,  for  time  and  circumstances  did  not  permit  of  as 
full  an  investigation  as  was  desirable  to  settle  the  question  ; 
but  if  the  rock  be  here  in  place,  it  adds  additional  proofs 
to  the  strong  dip  of  over  32'  per  mile  observed  between 
Panama  and  the  Eureka  well. 

§  197.  The  Lottsmlle  well,  drilled  in  the  autumn  of  1877, 
is  five  miles  from  the  Eureka  well,  and  its  height  above 
tide  1450'. 

With  a  dip  of  32'  to  the  mile  (see  §  195  above)  the  top  of 
the  Panama  conglomerate  should  lie  in  the  Lottsville  well, 
41'  beneath  the  surface,  i.  e. 

Panama  conglomerate  at  Eureka, 1569' 

Dip,  32'  per  mileXo  miles=160', 1409' 

Mouth  of  Lottsville  well, 1450'— 1409'=41' 


74  III.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

But  the  well-record  asserts  that  for  the  first  90'  there  is 
nothing  but  sandy  shales  ;  and  then,  20'  of  soft  red  rock. 

As  the  red  rocks  underlie  the  Panama  conglomerate  hori- 
zon (see  §  195  above)  in  the  country  to  the  north,  and  as  the 
dip  would  bring  it  down  into  the  ninety  feet  above  them 
here,  there  is  but  one  conclusion  possible,  viz.,  that  the 
Panama  conglomerate  (coming  south)  has  lost  its  massive 
character  and  been  converted  into  shales  or  thin  argilla- 
ceous sandstones. 

The  alternative  that  the  rate  of  dip  has  been  overestimated, 
and  that  the  Panama  horizon  overshoots  the  top  of  the 
Lottsville  well,  is  negatived  by  the  fact  that,  in  the  bedded 
rocks  exposed  in  a  ravine  for  a  considerable  distance  above 
the  oil  well,  some  greenish-blue  flags  have  been  quarried, 
here  containing  very  curious  fucoidal  impressions  on  their 
surfaces ;  but  there  is  no  well-marked  horizon  of  massive 
sandstone  exposed. 

Unavoidable  inferences. 

§  198.  These  meagre  data  are  all  that  have  been  secured 
in  relation  to  the  Panama  rock  in  this  part  of  the  State, 
and  it  is  a  matter  of  great  surprise  that  a  rock  exhibit- 
ing such  massive  proportions  as  this  at  Panama  (and  on 
the  range  northeast  and  southwest,  containing  the  quarries 
above  mentioned)  should  so  quickly  merge  to  the  south  and 
southeast  into  the  thick  masses  of  sandy  shale  accompany- 
ing it,  and  become  unrecognizable  as  a  distinct  stratum  in 
the  numerous  wells  of  that  section,  and  in  the  many  cliffs 
and  gorges  where  a  sandstone  might  reasonably  be  expected 
to  indicate  its  presence  in  the  topography  at  least,  although 
generally  so  drift-covered  as  not  to  be  actually  in  sight. 

§  199.  If  the  Panama  rock  were  one  of  the  Venango  oil- 
sands,  as  has  been  claimed  for  it,  we  should  expect  to  find 
some  geographical  sandstone  connection  between  it  and  the 
particular  oil-sand  (whether  the  1st,  2d,  or  3d)  which  is  sup- 
posed to  represent  it. 

Any  range  of  sandrock  in  Venango  county  from  20'  to  7(X 
thick,  outcropping  as  a  conglomerate  of  similar  thickness 
along  the  Panama  range,  only  25  miles  to  the  northwest  of 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  75 

the  oil-belt,  would  be  likely  to  show  unmistakably  its  hori- 
zon in  oil  wells  drilled  between  the  oil-belt  and  Panama. 

But  the  fact  is,  over  more  than  one  half  of  this  inter- 
vening area  we  get  no  reliable  expression  of  eitlier  the  Pan- 
ama rock  or  the  Venango  oil-sands  even  approximating  to 
their  normal  condition  ;  and  in  the  other  half  of  the  area 
what  indications  of  them  we  do  get  only  serve  to  prove 
that  the  Panama  rock  is  not  stratigraphically  identical  with 
either  of  the  three  (or  more)  oil-sands  ;  and  that  they  differ 
materially  also  in  their  respective  rates  of  dip  towards  the 
south. 

§  200.  Another  and  collateral  proof  that  the  Panama  rock 
is  not  one  of  the  Venango  oil  sands  is  deducible  from  the 
abundant  evidences  presented  on  all  hands  of  a  total  dis- 
similarity in  the  structure  of  the  oil  sands  and  associate 
measures  when  mewed  as  a  group  from  the  structure  of 
the  strata  accompanying  and  including  the  Panama  rock 
when  viewed  as  a  group. 

Facts  presented  in  other  parts  of  this  report  show  that 
the  Venango  oil-rocks  constitute  one  well-defined  and  con- 
sistent group  of  sandstones,  shales,  slates  and,  red  rocks ; 
and  that  the  sandy  members  of  this  group — whether  three 
in  number,  as  first  discovered  on  Oil  creek,  or  six  or  seven 
in  number  as  afterwards  developed  in  Butler  county — may 
all  be  included  between  two  horizontal  planes  not  more  than 
350'  (on  the  average)  vertically  apart. 

If  now  the  Panama  rock  be  one  of  the  oil  sands  we  should 
reasonably  expect  to  find  some  of  the  other  members  of  the 
group  accompanying  it.  If  it  be  the  First  sand,  then  some 
evidences  of  the  presence  of  the  Second  and  Third  should 
appear  at  proper  distances  below  it.  If  it  be  the  Third  sand, 
then  surely  some  traces  of  the  First  and  Second  should  be 
found  above  it. 

§201.  Sub-Panama  measures.  —  An  oil  well  put  down 
immediately  at  the  base  of  the  conglomerate  at  Panama  to 
the  depth  of  1200  feet  encountered  nothing  but  soft  shales 
and  slate  in  the  whole  distance. 

Other  wells  at  Clymer,  Columbus,  Corry,  Union  and  else- 


76  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

where  near  the  range  of  best  development  of  the  Panama 
rock  tell  the  same  story. 

Neither  do  the  outcrops  further  north,  where  the  under  - 
measures  expose  themselves  on  the  surface,  bring  up  to  view 
any  sandstone  at  all  comparable  with  the  oil  sands. 

Therefore  the  Panama  conglomerate  cannot  be  regarded 
as  the  First  oil  sand,  for  none  of  the  associate  lower  mem- 
bers of  the  group  accompany  it. 

§  202.  Super- Panama  measures. — In  going  over  the  hill 
west  of  Panama  to  Panama  station  we  can  examine  225'  of 
measures  overlying  the  conglomerate. 

In  going  from  Panama  south  to  the  Eureka  well  we  can 
examine  125'  of  the  same  measures. 

In  the  railway  cut  along  Coffee  creek  valley,  1£  miles 
southeast  of  Bear  lake  station  (A.  and  G.  W.  R.  R.)  where 
the  top  of  the  conglomerate  is  probably  30'  beneath  grade, 
we  can  examine  more  than  200'  of  the  same  measures. 

Nowhere  does  a  sandstone  stratum  appear  such  as  should 
be  expected  if  the  conglomerate  be  the  lowest  oil-rock. 

§  203.  In  this  Coffee  creek  valley  are  several  cuts,  and  in 
the  deepest  one  appear  the  following  rocks  : 

Drift  on  top  of  the  point  of  hill  cut  through, 10' 

Shale,  sandy,  with  thin  sandstone  layers, 10' 

Shale,  brown,  friable,         20' 

Sandstone,  one  persistent  plate,  three  inches. 

Shale,  brown, 4' 

Sandstone,  fine,  false-bedded,  blue, 4' 

Shale,  brown, 6' 

Total, 54' 

§  204.  The  bed  of  Coffee  creek  as  it  leaves  its  winding 
course  through  the  hills  and  enters  the  broad  valley  near 
Pine  creek  station  lays  bare  many  fine  exhibitions  of  wave 
marks.  Numerous  fossil  bands  are  found  here  and  some 
in  the  railway  cuts,  in  which  Spirifer  predominate,  some  of 
them  being  of  very  large  size.  All  the  fossils  have  a  CJie- 
mung  aspect  and  seem  to  be  identical  with  those  found 
above  the  Panama  rock  in  all  this  section. 

§  205.  The  Panama  conglomerate,  then,  tried  by  this  test 
cannot  be  the  Third  or  lowest  oil-sand  ;  for  there  is  plenty 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  77 

of  room  for  the  Second  sand,  at  least,  if  not  for  the  First, 
to  appear  above  ;  but  nothing  of  the  kind  can  be  seen. 

§  206.  It  follows  as  a  matter  of  course,  that  not  being  the 
First,  nor  the  Third,  it  cannot  be  the  Second  oil-sand ;  and 
we  must  conclude  that  the  Panama  rock  is  not  any  one  of 
the  Venango  oil-sands  ;  but  that  it  is  a  GJiemung  rock,  of 
greater  age,  lying  at  a  greater  depth  ;  and  that  it  fines  away 
rapidly  going  south  and  southeast ;  and  blending  with  its 
associate  measures  soon  becomes  untraceable  in  that  direc- 
tion. 

§  207.  It  seems  superfluous  now  to  attempt  to  prove  that 
the  Panama  rock  is  not  the  equivalent  of  the  Garland  con- 
glomerate, with  which  it  has  often  been  confounded  ;  but  a 
single  fact  bearing  on  this  point  may  be  added  here. 

On  the  west  side  of  Little  Brokenstraw  creek,  about  half 
way  between  Lottsville  and  Wrightsville  and  seven  miles 
southerly  from  the  Eureka  well,  a  rock  city  of  unmistak- 
able Garland  conglomerate  may  be  seen  on  the  crown  of 
the  ridge. 

It  is  near  our  line  run  (over  the  State  road)  in  1875,  and 
its  top  lies  about  1950'  above  tide.  The  top  of  the  Panama 
rock  at  this  point  should  be  approximately,  1345.* 

Here  then  we  have  a  vertical  interval  between  the  hori- 
zons of  the  two  rocks  calculated  to  be  more  than  600',  and 
that  too  without  taking  into  consideration  the  notable  fact 
that  the  Panama  horizon  is  apparently  dipping  south  at 
about  double  the  rate  of  the  Garland  horizon. 

The  Salamanca  conglomerate. 

§  208.  To  the  foregoing  summary  of  facts  in  relation  to 
this  rock  west  and  south  of  Chautauqua  lake,  we  have  now 
to  add  others  east  of  the  lake,  pointing  to  the  same  general 
conclusions. 

§  209.  A  line  drawn  from  Panama  to  the  long  famous 
Ellicottmlle  or  Salamanca  rock  city,  placed  upon  the  ridge 
between  the  streams  of  Little  valley  and  Great  valley,  3£ 
miles  north  of  Salamanca,  in  Cattaraugus  county,  N.  Y., 

*  At  Eureka  well  1569',  7  miles  dip  at  32'  per  mile— 224'.    1569—224=1345. 


78  III.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

would  pass  over  an  area  of  comparatively  low  levels,  the 
face  of  the  country  having  here  been  subjected  to  excessive 
erosion,  which  has  cut  down  the  measures  in  most  places 
below  the  horizon  of  the  Panama  rock. 

This  break  is  so  wide  (about  40  miles)  and  the  chain  of 
outcrops  is  so  completely  interrupted  by  it,  that  it  cannot 
easily  be  decided  whether  the  Panama  and  Salamanca  con- 
glomerates belong  to  the  same  horizon  or  not. 

§  210.  Dennis  oil  well. — After  making  a  hasty  examina- 
tion of  'some  of  the  exposures  of  the  Salamanca  rock,  in 
southern  New  York,  it  was  thought  advisable  to  secure  a 
complete  record  of  an  oil  well  on  one  of  the  highest  hills 
in  the  vicinity  of  Bradford,  McKean  county,  Pa.,  so  that 
the  position  of  the  rock  might  be  definitely  fixed  at  that 
place,  to  assist  in  ascertaining  its  dip  and  studying  its  asso- 
ciations. This  section  was  completed  in  February,  1878, 
and  is  given  in  a  subsequent  chapter.  It  will  be  seen, 
however,  on  reference  to  the  record,  that  it  does  not,  as  was 
hoped,  unravel  the  knot,  but  rather  complicates  the  prob- 
lem by  the  total  absence,  in  the  suite  of  specimens  pre- 
served, of  any  sandstone  corresponding  in  quality  to  the 
Salamanca  rock. 

This  absence  would  be  a  matter  of  great  surprise,  were 
we  not,  in  a  measure,  prepared  for  such  a  result  by  the  ab- 
sence of  any  good  representative  of  the  Panama  rock  in 
the  wells  holding  a  similar  southerly  relation  to  it,  as  de- 
scribed above. 

We  have  seen  that  the  Panama  rock  becomes  unrecog- 
nizable in  the  Lottsmlle  well,  ten  miles  south  of  a  70'  out- 
crop of  it  at  Panama. 

Just  so,  now,  at  Bradford,  twelve  miles  south  of  Carroll- 
ton,  where  a  good  exposure  of  the  Salamanca  conglomerate 
may  be  seen,  we  are  unable  to  fix  the  horizon  of  the  Sala- 
manca rock  in  the  Dennis  well,  by  the  lithology  of  any 
rock  drilled  through ;  for  there  is  nothing  like  it  in  the 
well- section  from  top  to  bottom. 

§  211.  This  similarity  in  the  physical  habits  of  the  two 
rocks  (the  Panama  and  the  Salamanca]  is  suggestive  at 
least  of  a  similar  origin  and  like  conditions  of  deposition  ; 


PANAMA  CONGLOMERATE.  III.  79 

and  it  may  be  noted  as  one  of  the  facts  in  support  of  the 
argument  that  they  both  belong  to  one  formation,  although 
their  stratigraphical  horizons  may  not  be  absolutely  or  pre- 
cisely identical. 

§  212.  The  failure  to  find  the  Salamanca  conglomerate 
decidedly  developed  and  plainly  located  in  the  Dennis  well, 
and  the  discovery  of  other  rock  cities  on  the  hills  border- 
ing the  Tunangwant  creek,  between  Carroll  ton  and  Brad- 
ford, which  have  not  yet  been  systematically  traced,  but 
which  apparently  lie  between  the  horizons  of  the  Salamanca 
rock  and  the  Glean  (Garland)  conglomerate,  makes  it  im- 
prudent at  present  to  attempt  to  fix  the  precise  relative 
positions  of  these  several  strata. 

It  appears  most  probable,  however,  that  there  are  three 
ranges  of  conglomerate  sandstones,  if  not  more,  outcrop- 
ing  along  these  State  line  hills — -all  forming  rock  cities  of 
similar  character,  where  the  conditions  are  favorable  ;  and 
that  they  have  all  heretofore  been  regarded  as  parts  of  one 
and  the  same  stratum. 

§  213.  If  this  view  of  the  structure  should  prove  to  be 
correct  we  shall  then  have  in  descending  order  the  follow- 
ing series  of  sand  formations  locally  conglomeritic : 

1.  Olean,  (=Garland:=Sharon=Ohio.) 

2.  Sub-Olean,  (=Sub-Grarland=Shenango. 

3.  Tunangwant. 
•4.   Salamanca. 

5.  Panama. 

But  we  must  await  further  investigation  before  the  true 
sequence  can  be  satisfactorily  established. 


80  III. 


Plate  XXII. 


SketchMap  showing  the  geographical  position 
of  Well  Sections  given  on  Plates  IV.  V.  VIMXII. 


CHAPTER.  VII. 

On  the  Mountain  sand  series,  and  its  contrast  with  tJie 
underlying  Oil  sand  group. 

[Illustrated  by  Plate  IV,  Figs.  5  to  12.} 

§  212.  The  Pleasantmlle  section. — In  Report  of  Progress 
I,  1874,  a  typical  section  made  from  oil-well  records  was 
given,  to  show  the  general  geological  structure  of  the  meas- 
ures drilled  through  at  Pleasant ville  in  Venango  county. 

At  that  time  but  little  field-work  had  been  done  and  the 
collection  of  facts  was  not  adequate  for  a  proper  compari- 
son and  correlation  of  the  leading  members  of  the  forma- 
tion, except  over  a  very  limited  area.  Subsequent  investi- 
gations, covering  a  broader  field  and  affording  better  op- 
portunities for  a  correct  interpretation  of  structure,  make 
it  evident  that  some  modification  should  now  be  made  in 
the  section  referred  to. 

§  213.  The  designations  First,  Second  and  Tliird  Mount- 
ain sands,  used  provisionally  in  1874,  answered  very  well 
for  the  purposes  of  that  local  report ;  but,  to  adhere  to  the 
use  of  these  ordinal  numbers  still,  after  the  comparison  of 
oil  well  and  surface  sections  has  been  extended  southwest- 
ward  to  the  very  borders  of  the  State  of  Ohio,  and  north- 
eastward into  the  southern  counties  of  the  State  of  New 
York,  would  only  perpetuate  confusion  in  our  geological 
nomenclature.  Other  rocks  than  those  thus  numbered  in 
early  oil  well  borings  have  been  found  intruding  into  the 
series ;  and  to  these  additional  rocks  fixed  geographical 
names  have  been  assigned  in  districts  outside  of  and  adjoin- 
ing the  oil  regions  proper.  I  propose  therefore  to  adopt  in 
this  report  such  geographical  names,  and  to  drop  the  use  of 
the  terms  First,  Second  and  Third  Oil  sands  as  no  longer 
available. 

6  III.  <81> 


82  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

§  214.  The  The  First  mountain  sand  appears  to  occupy 
the  horizon  of  the  Connoquenessing  sandstone  of  Butler 
county,  and  the  Kinzua  creek  sandstone  of  McKean  county, 
and  may  as  well  therefore  be  spoken  of  when  occasion  re- 
quires under  one  of  those  two  names. 

§  215.  The  Second  mountain  sand  cannot  indeed  be  robbed 
entirely  of  its  name  for  reasons  that  will  make  themselves 
felt  in  future  pages  of  this  report.  But  whenever  it  is  thus 
spoken  of,  the  name  must  be  accounted  as  a  mere  synonym 
for  the  Garland  conglomerate,  and  not  at  all  as  an  index  to 
the  numerical  position  of  the  rock  in  relation  to  other  sands 
in  the  series.  To  the  oil  men  it  will  always  be  the  Second 
mountain  sand  ;  but  to  the  geologist  it  will  sometimes  have 
another  number  in  the  series.  But  it  will  always  be  the 
Garland-Olean-STiaron-OJiio  conglomerate.  The  reason  for 
this  will  appear  further  on. 

§  216.  The  Third  mountain  sand  will  receive  in  this  re- 
port a  new  name,  the  Pithole  grit. 

This  rock  was  first  recognized  as  a  persistent  sandstone  in 
the  Pithole  oil  wells,  being  well  developed  in  all  that  coun- 
try, and  making  conspicuous  outcrops  along  the  Allegheny 
river  on  the  south  and  along  Oil  creek  on  the  west. 

The  term  grit  sufficiently  designates  it  as  a  sandstone ; 
but  what  is  more  important,  will  serve  to  associate  it  in  the 
reader's  mind  with  the  Berea  grit  of  Ohio,  which  seems  to 
have  been  a  cotemporaneous  formation ;  although  the  two 
rocks  have  not  been  traced  across  the  country  towards  each 
other  to  a  common  place  of  actual  meeting. 

§  217.  Neglecting  for  the  present  the  mountain  sands  as 
separate  members  of  a  small  series,  and  grouping  them  and 
their  intervals  together  as  a  whole,  I  must  now  show  that 
they  constitute  one  (and  the  upper  member)  of  a  larger 
series. 

The  vertical  section  of  rocks  in  the  oil-belt,  as  exhibited 
by  the  well-records,  shows  three  characteristic  subdivisions  : 

1.  Mountain  sands,  so  called  by  the  oil  well  drillers. 

2.  Crawford  shales,  a  group  of  shales  and  mud-rocks,  in 
the  midst  of  which  lies  the  PitJiole  grit. 


MOUNTAIN  SAND  SERIES.  III.  83 

3.  Venango  oil  sands,  a  group  of  sandstones  and  shales 
interleaved. 

These  names  will  be  useful  in  denning  those  features  of 
hardness  and  softness  by  which  the  driller  classifies  the 
rocks  through  which  his  well  passes  downwards  ;  but  they 
must  not  be  taken  by  the  geologist  to  signify  formations  of 
three  successive  and  distinct  ages,  plainly  and  absolutely 
separated  from  each  other.  For  such  dividing  planes  can- 
not be  satisfactorily  established  from  the  imperfect  records 
of  oil  wells  alone. 

The  oil  miner's  field  of  operation  is  large.  He  has 
stretched  a  broad  cordon  of  wells  across  Pennsylvania  from 
the  Ohio  to  the  New  York  State  lines,  and  furnished  from 
them  an  amount  of  information  bearing  upon  the  general 
underground  structure  that  could  have  been  obtained  in  no 
other  way.  But  any  attempt  to  work  out  the  complete 
geological  column  of  the  country  which  he  has  thus  per- 
forated at  numberless  points,  or  to  define  the  precise  limits 
of  the  great  Palaeozoic  formations  known  in  eastern  Penn- 
sylvania as  Nos.  VIII,  IX,  X,  XI,  and  XII,  solely  from  the 
data  thus  obtained,  would  only  result  in  diiappointment 
and  confusion. 

In  this  report  I  limit  myself  to  the  study  of  the  well 
records  strictly  as  well  records ;  and  by  comparing  one 
record  with  another  I  shall  endeavor  to  establish  the  general 
features  of  structure  throughout  the  oil  district /  leaving 
the  special  surveys  of  adjacent  districts  to  determine  how 
far  the  several  upper  Palaeozoic  formations  can  here  be 
recognized. 

§  218.  The  unity  of  the  Venango  oil  group,  or  rather  its 
uniformity  as  an  oil-producing  formation,  is  the  first  fact  to 
illustrate. 

It  is  important  to  state  the  fact  clearly  at  the  outset,  that 
throughout  the  whole  area  which  has  afforded  the  Venango 
oil, — that  is,  along  the  entire  length  of  the  oil  producing 
belt  (or  belts)  of  country, — the  structure  of  the  oil-sand- 
group  is  virtually  one  and  the  same.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  moment  we  leave  the  oil-producing-area  to  the  right  or 


84  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

left,  the  internal  constitution  of  the  oil-sand-group  becomes 
quite  different. 

All  the  wells  which  pierce  the  oil  producing  belts  exhibit 
remarkably  the  same  group  of  oil-sands.  All  wells  put 
down  outside  of  these  belts  exhibit  quite  a  different  kind 
of  deposits  when  they  reach  the  plane  of  the  oil-sands. 

§  219.  To  make  visible  this  prime  fact  of  the  geology  of 
the  region  I  have  selected  several  series  of  oil  well  records, 
ranged  along  certain  geographical  lines  upon  the  map  ;  some 
of  these  lines  following  the  general  northeast-southwest  di- 
rection of  the  oil  belts ;  others  diverging  more  or  less  at 
right  angles  from  it  and  crossing  the  barren  country. 

The  locations  of  the  wells  chosen  for  this  representation 
are  shown  by  spots  upon  a,  sketch-map,  given  on  page  80 
above,  which  extends  from  Tidioute  in  Venango  county  to 
Pittsburg.  Five  wells  in  Venango  county  are  so  marked  ; 
10  in  Clarion  county ;  3  in  Armstrong ;  7  in  Butler ;  2  in 
Allegheny  ;  3  in  Beaver ;  3  in  Lawrence  ;  and  1  in  Mercer. 

The  vertical  sections  into  which  the  records  have  been 
translated  occupy  Plates  IV,  V,  VI,  VII  and  XII,  accom- 
panying this  volume  ;  and  they  are  arranged  with  the  south- 
westernmost  to  the  left,  the  northeasternmost  to  the  right 
of  the  reader  as  he  sees  them  on  the  map. 

§  220.  TJie  first  series  to  be  discussed  (see  Plate  IV,  Figs. 
5  to  12)  is  composed  of  wells  stretched  along  a  line  of  about 
80  miles  in  a  southwesterly  direction  extending  from  Pleas- 
antville  in  Venango  county  to  Smith's  Ferry,  at  the  Ohio 
State  line,  in  Beaver  county. 

Fig.  5.  Smith's  Ferry,  Ohio  township,  Beaver  county,  Pa. 
(Record  from  Report  Q,  page  270.) 

Fig.  6.  Ohioville,  Ohio  township,  Beaver  county.  (Re- 
port Q,  p.  271.) 

Fig.  7.  Beaver  Falls,  Beaver  county,  Economy  well  No. 
2.  (See  Appendix.) 

Fig.  8.  Iron  Bridge,  Perry  township,  Lawrence  county, 
Nesbitt  or  Chew  well.  (See  Appendix.) 

Fig.  9.  Cove  Hollow,  Slippery  rock  township,  Lawrence 
county,  Nesbitt  or  Shaffer  well.  (Appendix.) 


MOUNTAIN  SAND  SEEIES.  III.  85 

Fig.  10.  Muddy  Creek,  Brady  township,  Butler  county, 
John  Smith  well.  (Appendix.) 

Fig.  11.  Bullion,  Clinton  township,  Yenango  county, 
Phillips  Bros.  well.  (Report  I.I.,  No.  1093.) 

Fig.  12.  Pleasantville,  Venango  county,  Reliance  well. 
(See  Appendix.) 

§  221.  Between  Pleasantville  and  Bullion  the  essential 
elements  of  structure  are  so  uniform  and  they  are  so  well 
established  by  records  from  the  large  number  of  wells 
drilled  in  the  interval,  that  there  is  no  need  of  introducing 
intermediate  sections  between  these  points. 

A  section  made  from  one  of  the  valley  wells  at  Bullion 
is  used,  because  no  detailed  record  of  a  hill-well  could  be 
obtained.  The  length  of  column  is  sufficient,  however,  for 
all  the  purposes  of  this  comparison".  It  shows  the  oil  group  ; 
an  interval  with  red  rock  above  the  First  oil  sand;  then  a 
20  foot  sandstone  with  another  mass  of  soft  rock  above  it, 
and  then  a  heavy  sandstone  at  the  top.* 

The  stratigraphical  agreement  between  the  Pleasantville 
and  Bullion  sections  is  so  apparent  that  there  can  be  little 
risk  of  error  in  identifying  the  sandstones  and  shales  in  one 
well  with  those  lying  at  the  same  horizon  in  the  other,  and 
we  thus  trace  a  continuance  of  the  Oil  creek  structure  nearly 
to  the  southern  limits  of  Yenango  county. 

§  222.  A  similar  arrangement  of  strata  might  be  shown 
to  prevail  in  oil  wells  at  Tidioute  and  Colorado  in  Warren 
county  ;  Church  run  in  Crawford  county  ;  and  Sugar  creek 
and  Raymilton  in  Yenango  county,  f 

§  223.  Southwest  of  Bullion. — In  carrying  forward  our 
comparison  of  sections  to  the  southwest  of  Bullion,  the 

*The  record  gives  no  intimation  of  the  constitution  of  this  100'  SS.,  but  it  is 
most  probable  that  it  contains  shaly  layers  near  the  centre  as  shown  at  the 
corresponding  horizon  in  Fig.  10,  and  is  not  a  massive  sandstone  from  top  to 
bottom  as  here  represented. 

f  Going  still  further  northward,  the  outcrop  of  the  Garland  conglomerate 
(with  the  Pithole  grit  where  the  exposures  are  favorable,  appearing  at  the 
proper  distance  beneath  it)  might  be  traced  in  the  hills  of  Warren  county  at 
Tidioute,  Garland  and  West  Spring  Creek;  and  of  Crawford  county  at  Sparta, 
Meadville,  Evansburg  and  Jamestown.  But  these  details  need  not  be  repeated 
here  as  they  have  been  sufficiently  described  in  preceding  chapters  of  this  re- 
port. 


86  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Ferriferous limestone  (the  "key-rock"  of  the  Butler  county 
driller)  becomes  an  important  auxilliary  and  guide.  It  is 
well  to  note,  therefore,  that  its  place  in  the  Bullion  Run 
section  would  be  about  870  feet  above  the  First  oil  sand; 
which  fact  is  ascertained  thus : 

At  Clintonville,  3|  miles  southwesterly  from  Bullion  run, 
the  Ferriferous  limestone  is  found  in  the  hilltops,  and 
wells  drilled  near  its  outcrop  show  an  interval  of  about  870'. 

On  the  highest  hill  immediately  south  of  Bullion  the 
limestone  and  underlying  shales  cannot  be  found.  They 
have  been  eroded  off.  The  erosion  seems  to  have  been 
checked  by  the  Homewood  sandstone,  which  usually  lies 
from  30'  to  50'  below  the  limestone. 

Wells  on  this  hill  find  First  sand  at  830  to  840  feet ; 
which  would  make  the  interval  between  the  Ferriferous 
limestone  and  First  sand,  at  this  point,  agree  substantially 
with  that  observed  at  Clintonville. 

§  224.  John  Smith  well. — We  may  now  pass  on  to  Fig. 
10,  which  is  made  from  the  register  of  the  John  Smith  well, 
put  down  in  1877,  by  Messrs.  Phillips  Bros.,  in  Brady  town- 
ship, Butler  county,  southwest  (and  about  sixteen  miles  in 
advance)  of  the  termination  of  the  Bullion  Run  develop- 
ment, and  twenty  miles  from  the  location  of  Fig.  11. 

The  section  is  so  remarkably  in  accord  with  the  two  al- 
ready compared,  that  it  might  be  viewed  with  suspicion  as 
having  been  made  up  from  some  established  formula,  in 
conformity  to  the  views  of  those  who  always  find  the  rocks 
"regular"  no  matter  where  they  drill,  did  it  not  present 
in  itself  many  strong  evidences  of  its  fidelity  to  truth,  and 
were  we  not  assured  by  the  owners  of  the  well  that  it  was 
carefully  watched  and  measured  by  themselves  while  being 
drilled. 

The  record  need  not  be  accepted,  however,  on  its  own 
merits  alone.  From  the  Ferriferous  limestone  down  to  the 
red  rocks  and  First  oil  sand  it  is  confirmed  in  a  remarkable 
manner  by  wells  not  far  distant  from  it — on  Wolf  and 
Slippery  Rock  creeks — wells  put  down  by  other  parties, 
and  whose  records  have  probably  never  before  been  brought 
into  comparison  with  this  well. 


MOUNTAIN  SAND  SERIES.  III.  87 

Below  the  red  rock  there  is  a  marked  disagreement  be- 
tween the  Smith  well  record  and  the  others  ;  but  this  is  not 
at  all  surprising ;  it  is,  in  fact,  in  keeping  with  observed 
facts  in  well,  developed  territory,  where  the  oil  group 
changes  materially  in  structure,  or  fades  out  quickly,  in 
directions  transverse  to  the  trend  of  the  deposit. 

§  225.  If  then  the  Smith  well  section  may  be  relied  upon 
there  need  be  no  hesitation  in  concluding  that  the  general 
structure  shown  in  the  oil  wells  of  Yehango  county  pre- 
vails here  also  ;  and  we  may  now  take  this  well  as  a  pivotal 
point  from  which  to  carry  forward  the  further  identifica- 
tion of  these  measures  to  the  northwestward,  to  the  west- 
ward, and  to  the  southward. 

§  226.  Southwest  of  the  Smith  well.  —  Continuing  our 
course  in  the  same  direction,  then,  we  may  now  compare 
the  Slippery  RocJc  well,  Figs.  9  and  8 ;  the  Beaver  Falls 
well,  Fig.  7,  and  those  near  the  Ohio  line,  Figs.  6  and  5. 

§  227.  The  Ferriferous  limestone  is  not  seen  in  any  of 
these  sections,  as  it  lies  above  their  tops.*  But  since  it  is 
seen  outcropping  above  the  well  mouths,  on  the  hillsides 
along  Slippery  Rock  creek  and  the  Beaver  river,  its  place 
over  each  section  is  readily  ascertained ;  and  the  sections 
are  adjusted  mutually  by  reference  to  the  horizon  of  the 
limestone,  f 

§  228.  Tlie  Mountain  sands  unreliable  guides. — The 
variableness  of  the  several  members  of  the  sandy  deposits 
belonging  to  the  Mountain  Sand  series  is  well  illustrated 
in  these  figures ;  as  indeed  it  is  in  every  case  where  well 
sections  are  placed  side  by  side  for  comparison. 

It  is  quite  evident  from  a  study  of  these  sandy  deposits, 
that  no  one  of  them,  however  locally  thickened  or  largely 
developed  in  this  or  that  particular  locality,  can  be  trusted 
as  a  sure  guide  to  the  geology  (whether  in  an  oil  well,  or  in 
a  surface  section  where  the  rocks  are  exposed  to  view)  any 
further  than  it  can  be  actually  traced  without  break  from 

*  Only  the  Ohioville  well  is  high  enough  to  catch  it,  and  in  the  record  of  this 
well  it  is  wanting,  the  deposit  being  either  absent,  or  so  thin  and  poor  as  to 
be  overlooked  by  the  driller. 

f  This  is  shown  by  the  addition  to  the  Beaver  Falls  well  of  a  portion  of 
Prof.  White's  surface  section,  given  in  Report  QQ. 


88  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

place  to  place.  When  a  sandstone  is  once  lost  sight  of  it 
is  very  hazardous  to  attempt  to  take  it  up  again  in  a  dis- 
tant place  without  other  proofs  of  identity  than  an  appar- 
ent similarity  of  composition  and  structure  ;  for  it  is  plain 
to  see  that  the  Carboniferous  measures  are  full  of  these 
varying  strata,  and  one  band  of  them  often  imitates  so 
closely  another  in  all  its  characteristics  that  no  depend- 
ence can  be  placed  on  any  one  of  them  unless  its  identity 
is  well  assured  by  collateral  evidence. 

§  229.  Reliability  of  well  records  when  properly 
grouped. — I  have  said  a  great  deal  in  other  places  about  the 
unreliability  of  well  records.  It  is  quite  true  that  in  most 
cases  they  are  faulty  in  detail,  and  particularly  so  in  their 
upper  parts  ;  but  whenever  a  number  of  them  are  available 
for  comparison  in  the  same  locality  the  general  structure 
can  be  made  out  almost  to  a  certainty.  The  Slippery  Rock 
wells  furnish  an  instance. 

The  record  Fig.  8  exhibits  the  sandstone  producing 
heavy  oil,  which  must  have  been  wanting  (or  very  poorly 
developed)  in  record  Fig.  9  ;  for  it  is  not  probable  that  the 
drillers  overlooked  it,  since  it  is  one  of  the  oil  horizons 
which  they  were  searching  for,  and  the  place  of  which  they 
were  well  acquainted  with. 

Again,  a  combination  of  the  two  sections  Fig.  8  and  Fig. 
9  taken  thus  as  a  type  of  the  stratification  in  that  locality 
harmonizes  well  wTith  section  Fig.  10. 

So,  too,  a  combination  of  Figs.  5  and  6  confirms  the 
structure  of  Fig.  7. 

But  if  we  had  merely  Figs.  6  and  7, — or  merely  Figs.  5 
and  9, — and  no  more  definite  horizon  than  the  sandstones 
themselves  to  guide  us,  a  mistake  might  easily  be  made  in 
attempting  to  identify  any  particular  stratum  in  one  well 
with  that  in  another. 

§  230.  These  sections  on  Plate  IV  are  given,  it  must  be 
remembered,  for  the  purpose  of  correlating  the  geology  of 
Venango  and  Butler  counties,  along  a  geographical  interval 
of  about  fifty  miles.  And  they  are  amply  sufficient  for  the 
purpose ;  seeing  that  they  are  confirmed  by  scores  of  other 
wells  along  the  line. 


MOUNTAIN  SAND  SERIES.  III.  89 

The  uniform  thickness  of  the  'Crawford  shales  between 
the  Mountain  sands  and  the  Pithole  grit, — the  persistency 
of  the  Pithole  grit,— the  interval  of  shales  always  to  be 
seen  below  it,  carrying  the  characteristic  red  rock  of  this 
horizon, — and  the  well-sustained  integrity  of  the  Oil  group 
at  nearly  every  point,  clearly  establish  the  identifications 
here  claimed. 

§  231.  The  red  rocks  grow  thin  in  a  southwest  direction 
from  the  Smith  well  to  Slippery  rock  creek. 

The  Venango  oil  sands  as  a  group  not  only  thin  away, 
but  disappear  and  are  wanting  in  the  Slippery  Rock  coun- 
try. 

Both  these  guides  to  the  mutual  adjustment  of  the  well 
sections  are  therefore  lost,  as  we  proceed  southwestward. 

But  on  the  other  hand,  the  Ferriferous  limestone  in  the 
hillsides  above  the  derricks  becomes  a  good  guide  horizon. 

From  the  Ferriferous  limestone  down  to  the  Red  rocks 
the  section  type  on  Slippery  rock  is  very  much  the  same  as 
that  on  Muddy  creek. 

From  the  Red  rocks  down  to  the  Oil  sands  there  is  great 
variation,  as  just  observed.  But  the  variation  is  confined 
to  this  interval.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  cause  pre- 
venting the  deposit  of  the  Oil  sand  group  in  the  Slippery 
rock  vicinity,  it  evidently  operated  only  up  to  the  time  of 
the  deposit  of  the  Red  rocks.  After  that  time  uniform  de- 
posits were  spread  over  both  districts,  and  .the  well  sections 
become  generally  alike,  up  to  the  Ferriferous  limestone. 

§  232.  Southwest  of  Slippery  rock. — At  Beaver  Falls  and 
Ohioville  the  Ferriferous  limestone  is  the  key  rock. 

In  this  part  of  the  country  the  cause  which  prevented  the 
oil  group  deposits  'on  Slippery  Rock  creek  seems  to  have 
lasted  longer.  Its  effects  are  observable  in  higher  strata ; 
above  the  red  rocks.  Not  only  is  the  Oil  group  cut  out, 
and  also  the  red  rock  over  it,  but  the  sandstone  deposit  oc- 
cupying the  horizon  of  the  Pithole  grit  is  enlarged:  the 
shaly  interval  above  the  sandstone  becomes  sandy  ;  and  thus 
the  true  base  of  the  Mountain  sand  series  becomes  some- 
what obscure. 

§  233.  The  Homewood  and  Connoquenessing  sandstones. 


90  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  E.  CARLL. 

fortunately,  can  now  be  added  to  the  Ferriferous  limestone 
as  guides. 

These  constitute  two  well  marked  horizons,  quite  reliable 
as  bases  of  measurement  for  adjusting  our  well  sections  : — 
the  Homewood  sandstone  at  Beaver  falls  and  Smith' s  ferry — 
the  Connoquenessing  sandstone  (seen  lower  down  in  the 
sections  Figs.  5  to  10)  containing  in  some  places  thin  beds 
of  shale,  but  recorded  variously  as  84',  40',  50',  67',  75'  and 
100'  thick. 

§  234.  PitTiole  grit. — The  general  harmony  of  structure 
being  thus  well  established,  there  can  be  little  doubt  that 
the  Eighty  foot  sandstone  at  Beaver  Falls  is  the  equiva- 
lent of  the  Pithole  grit,  which  we  have  therefore  now  traced 
through  from  Pleasantville  in  Venango  county  to  the  Ohio 
State  line. 

§  235.  The  Amber  oil  and  Heavy -oil  horizons. — It  fol- 
lows from  this  study  of  our  sections  that  the  Ohioville  am- 
ber oil  must  be  derived  from  the  horizon  of  the  Pithole 
grit,  which  also  furnishes  amber  oil  in  small  quantities  on 
Slippery  Rock  creek. 

It  follows  as  logically,  also,  that  the  Slippery  rock  heavy 
oil  is  found  in  one  of  the  lower  members  of  the  Mountain 
sand  series,  an  horizon  which  also  produces  heavy  oil  in 
many  wells  at  Smith' s  ferry. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
On  tlie  identity  of  the  Pithole  grit  with  the  Berea  grit. 

[Illustrated  by  Plate  JF,  Figs.  1  to  4.} 

§  236.  The  Pithole  grit  forms  one  of  the  most  prominent 
features  in  the  sections  referred  to  in  the  foregoing  chapter. 
It  appears  to  be  more  constant  in  its  horizon,  and  to  pre- 
serve its  identity  more  unmistakably  than  any  of  the  other 
sandstones  along  the  line  where  the  wells  are  located.  We 
know,  however,  that  in  some  parts  of  Clarion  county  and 
Butler  county  it  is  very  inconstant,  and  is  frequently  un- 
recognizable. 

It  may  be  well  then  to  examine  somewhat  into  its  north- 
ern and  western  extension  with  a  view  of  ascertaining  its 
character  in  that  direction,  and  seeing  what  the  probabili- 
ties are  of  its  being  the  equivalent  of  the  Berea  grit  in 
Ohio,  the  oil-bearing  rock  of  the  Mecca  oil  district. 

§  237.  Four  well  sections  are  added  to  those  described 
above,  on  plate  IV,  to  assist  in  this  investigation.* 

Fig.  1.  The  upper  portion  of  the  deep  well  at  New  Castle 
in  Lawrence  county  ;  continued  upwards  as  a  generalized 
section  of  the  surface  rocks,  after  Mr.  Chance's  survey 
along  the  Shenango  river  valley,  in  1875.  See  Report  of 
Progress  V,  page  228,  Fig.  151. 

Fig.  2.  The  John  Smith  well  in  Brady  township,  Butler 
county.  Its  rocks  have  been  identified  in  the  description 
of  Fig.  10.  See  §  224  above. 

*  For  full  records  of  these  wells,  see  Appendix. 
(  91  III.  ) 


92  HI. 


Plate  XXIII. 


PITHOLE  GEIT.  „     JII.  93 

Fig.  3.  The  upper  portion  of  the  deep  well  at  SJiaron  in 
Mercer  county  ;  continued  upwards  by  the  addition  of  Mr. 
Chance's  section  of  the  surface  rocks. 

Fig.  4.  The  Raymond  well,  No.  6,  at  Raymilton  in  Ve- 
nango  county;  continued  upwards  so  as  to  include  the 
Mercer  coal  group  outcrops,  in  the  hillsides  above  the  well 
mouth. 

§  238.  In  studying  sections  made  from  the  records  of 
wells  drilled  outside  of  the  oil  producing  areas,  where  the 
Oil  sand  group  is  not  found  in  its  integrity,  and  the  sur- 
face rocks  belong  to  the  Mountain  sand  series,  errors  of 
identification  may  readily  be  made  if  one  is  compelled  to 
to  depend  on  the  well  records  alone. 

In  all  cases  where  it  can  be  done,  then,  it  is  advisable  to 
lengthen  the  well  section  upwards  as  high  as  to  the  outcrop 
of  the  Ferriferous  limestone  on  the  hill  slopes.  With  this 
key  rock  in  the  sections  comparisons  can  be  confidently 
made  with  other  wells  situated  in  any  direction.  This  plan 
has  been  adopted  in  Figs.  1,  2,  3,  and  4 ;  which  are  all  four 
adjusted  to  a  horizontal  line  above  the  well-mouths  repre- 
senting the  position  of  the  Ferriferous  limestone. 

§  239.  The  horizontal  coincidence  of  the  horizons  of  lime- 
stone, coal  and  red  rocks  in  these  sections  leaves  little 
room  to  doubt  that  the  Pithole  grit  is  represented  lying  at 
a  depth  of  382'  in  the  New  Castle  well  by  the  78'  sand- 
stone, and  of  185'  in  the  Sharon  well  by  the  75'  sandstone. 

§  240.  The  Mecca  oil  Jield  in  Trumbull  county,  in  Ohio, 
lies  about  eighteen  miles  northwest  of  Sharon. 

The  geologists  who  have  surveyed  the  State  of  Ohio  assert 
that  the  oil-bearing  rock  of  that  district  is  the  Ber.a  grit, 
named  from  the  famous  quarries  worked  at  Berea,  Inde- 
pendence, Amherst,  and  other  places  in  that  State. 

If,  then,  the  75  foot  sandstone  in  the  Sharon  well  could  be 
shown  to  be  the  equivalent  of  the  Mecca  oil-rock,  the  pro- 
priety of  identifying  the  Pithole  grit  of  Pennsylvania  with 
the  Berea  grit  of  Ohio  could  hardly  be  questioned.  But  as 
no  well  sections  offer  themselves  for  comparison  across  this 
interval  of  eighteen  miles,  we  are  compelled  to  resort  to  a 


94  III.      k    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

calculation  of  dips,  and  a  consideration  of  collateral  evi- 
dence. * 

§  241.  The  following  figures,  taken  from  the  Ohio  Geo- 
logical Reports,  show  the  relation  of  the  Berea  grit  to  ocean 
level  at  the  places  named.  See  map,  page  92  above. 

Above  tide. 
Near  the  mouth  of  Vermillion  river,  ......  base  673'  top  733 


Amherst  .....................     "714 

Elyria,  .....................     "638 

Berea,    ........  (80'  thick,)  .......     "713 

Cuyahoga  Valley,  N.  line  of  Summit  Co.,    ..."    748 


774 
698 
793 
808 
1081 


Little  Mountain,  ................ 

Where  the  base  of  the  rock  is  given  in  the  Report,  I  have 
added  a  constant  60'  to  get  the  top  elevation,  which  may 
not  be  absolutely  correct  in  every  instance. 

The  levels  of  places  further  east,  determined  by  our  sur- 
vey, are  as  follows  : 

Above  tide. 
Powers  Corners,  oil-bearing  rock,  (Berea  Grit,) 

Mecca  town,  O.,  ...................  top    915* 

Jamestown,  Mercer  Co.,  Pa.,    .   .   .  (Berea?)  ..... 


Sharon,  Mercer  Co.,  Pa., (Pithole  grit,) 

New  Castle,  Lawrence  Co.,  Pa.,  .  .  "  " 
Meadville,  Crawford  Co.,  Pa.,  ...  "  " 
Ray  mil  ton,  Venango  Co.,  Pa.,  .  .  .  "  " 
Fresh- Water  rock,  at  Warren,  Ohio,  (Berea?)  .  .  . 


1095 
715 
428 

1303 


765 

§  242.   The  calculated  average  dip  per  mile  of  the  Berea 
grit  is  then  as  follows,  (in  feet :) 

A.   From  Little  Mountain,  Geauga  Co.,  O. 

*  It  is  not  to  be  supposed,  nor  is  it  here  or  anywhere  else  in  this  report  in- 
tended to  be  asserted,  that  this  stratum  of  sandstone  (or  any  other  in  fact) 
lies  in  an  uniform  plane,  susceptible  of  accurate  and  indisputable  tracing  in 
this  or  that  direction,  by  the  extension  of  the  slopes  which  are  known  to  ob- 
tain in  on£  locality,  into  an  undeveloped  district  miles  in  advance.  Undoubt 
edly  there  are  slight  undulations  and  warpings  in  the  most  undisturbed  of- 
strata;  but  it  is  nevertheless  evident  from  experience  in  similar*  cases  that 
the  general  gradual  southwestward  and  southward  sinking  of  the  formations, 
relative  to  ocean  level  will  plainly  manifest  itself  when  a  considerable  dis- 
tance intervenes  between  the  points  of  comparison,  whatever  local  irregular- 
ities may  exist.  The  figures  given  in  the  text,  therefore,  are  not  intended  to 
represent  the  exact  slopes  of  the  Berea  grit,  or  of  the  Pithole  grit ;  for  in 
some  cases,  no  doubt,  the  formations  run  across  slightly  disturbed  areas;  but 
they  show  the  position  of  the  rocks  approximately;  and  they  thus  indicate 
the  horizon  at  which  one  may  reasonably  look  for  them,  in  sections. 
*  By  barometer  observation. 


PITHOLE  GRIT.  III.  95 

1.  Southwest  to  Berea, 8' 

2.  South  to  Cuyahoga  Valley, 9' 

3.  Southeast    to  Warren,  Trumbull  county,  O.,  .......  8' 

4.  Southeast    to  Powers  Corners,  (Mecca,) 5' 

B.  From  Jamestown,  Mercer  county,  Pa. : 

1.  West-southwest  to  Powers  Corners,  Ohio 9.5' 

2.  Southwest  to  Warren,  Ohio, 12' 

3.  South  to  Sharon,  Pa.,     22' 

4.  South  to  New  Castle,  Pa., 15' 

C.  From  Meadville,  Crawford  county,  Pa. : 

1.  Southwest  to  Jamestown,  Pa., 11' 

2.  South-southwest  to  Sharon,  Pa., 18'     . 

3.  South  by  west      to  Newcastle,  Pa., 20' 

4.  South  by  east       to  Raymilton,  Pa., 20' 

D.  From  Powers  Corners,  (Mecca,)  Ohio: 

1.  South  by  west      to  Warren,  Ohio, 14' 

2.  Southeast  to  Sharon,  Pa 12' 

3.  Southeast  to  Newcastle,  Pa.,  .  , 14' 

E.  From  Warren,  Trumbull  county,  Ohio : 

1.  East  by  south   to  Sharon,  Pa., 3' 

2.  East-southeast  to  Newcastle,  Pa., «10.5 

F0  From  Sharon,  Pa.  : 

1.  South-southeast  to  Newcastle,  Pa., 15' 

§  243.  Of  course,  the  concordance  of  these  various  calcu- 
lations, even  were  it  perfect,  would  not  prove  the  rock  at 
all  these  points  one  and  the  same,  i.  e.,  Berea  grit=Pithole 
grit ;  but  it  lends  an  additional  reasonable  coloring  to  the 
hypothesis.  For,  in  a  country  so  little  disturbed  by  crust- 
warpings  as  this  confessedly  is,  some  reliable  conclusions 
may  be  drawn  from  a  study  of  the  slopes  of  the  strata  when 
extended  over  considerable  areas. 

§  244.  The  remarkably  uniform  declension  of  the  Oil 
rocks  towards  the  southwest,  shown  in  the  large  diagram 
Plate  VIII,  is  merely  a  parallel  fact,  illustrative  as  well  as 
confirmatory  of  the  general  slope  of  the  (higher  lying)  Pit- 
hole-Berea  grit  in  that  direction. 

§  245.  The  red  rocks  offer  another  open  line  of  evidence 
to  the  above  presumed  identity  of  the  Pithole  grit  with  the 
Berea  grit  further  west. 


96  III.          REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

The  'probabilities  of  the  correctness  of  the  identification 
are  greatly  strengthened  by  the  fact  that  a  thick  and  persist- 
ent band  of  red  shale  is  known  to  underlie  the  Pithole  grit, 
all  the  way  from  the  south  line  of  Warren  county  to  the  John 
Smith  well  (Fig.  10)  in  Butler  county,  a  distance  of  about 
55  miles, — that  it  appears  in  proper  place  at  New  Castle,  17 
miles  in  advance  to  the  southwest, — and  that  the  geologists 
of  Ohio  state  that  in  their  northeastern  counties  the  only 
red  rock  known  to  them  in  this  part  of  the  geological  col- 
umn is  the  red  member  of  tJte  Bedford  shale,  which  comes 
in  immediately  below  the  Berea  grit.  * 

*  "Beneath  the  Berea  grit,  in  northern  Ohio,  we  find 70'  to  75'  of  argillaceous 
shale,  of  which  the  upper  portion  is  generally  of  a  marked  red  color,  while 
the  lower  portion  is  dark  bluish  grey.  These  shales  are  very  variable  in  their 
relative  thickness,  sometimes  one  or  the  other  filling  the  entire  interval  be- 
tween the  Berea  grit  above  and  the  black  Cleveland  shale  below,  sometimes  that 
interval  being  equally  divided  between  them,  and  sometimes  again  one  or 
the  other  greatly  preponderating,  while  both  are  present.  In  the  section  ex- 
posed at  Bedford  the  red  shale  is  scarcely  visible ;  while  it  is  met  with  at  New- 
burg,  five  miles  distant,  and  in  the  hills  east  of  Cleveland  fills  the  larger  part 
of  the  interval  that  separates  the  Berea  grit  from  the  black  shale  which  un- 
derlies the  East  Cleveland  quarries.  At  Berea  and  Elyria  both  shales  are 
visible ;  while  on  the  Vermilion — which  takes  its  name  from  this  circum- 
stance— the  red  shale  is  much  more  largely  developed  and  attains  a  thickness 
of  something  like  sixty  feet." — Geology  of  Ohio,  vol.  2,  page  90. 

"Below  the  Berea  grit  comes  in  the  Bedford  shale,  and  this  is  exposed  in 
all  places  where  the  sandstone  is  cut  through.  In  L/orain  county  the  upper 
part  of  the  Bedford  shale  is  generally  red,  and  this  will  serve  as  a  convenient 
guide  in  future  explorations  made  in  search  of  the  Berea  grit,  it  being  un- 
derstood that  the  only  red  shale  in  the  county  lies  immediately  beneath  the 
sandstone.  This  red  shale  is  well  shown  at  the  village  of  French  Creek,  in 
the  gorge- of  Black  river,  at  Elyria,  in  the  railroad  cut  between  Elyria  and 
Amherst,  in  the  quarries  at  Amherst  and  in  the  cliffs  bordering  the  Vermil- 
ion in  Brownhelm." — {Vol.  #,  page  212.) 

"In  some  localities  [in  Summit  county]  the  Bedford  shale  is  more  or  less 
red,  and  has  been  here,  as  elsewhere,  used  as  a  mineral  paint." — Geo.  Ohio, 
vol.  1,  p.  209. 

"Section  of  the  rocks  in  the  valley  of  Black  River: 

1.  Berea  grit,  thickness, 40'  to  70' 

2.  Red  shale,  thickness,  }  (  ...  30'  to  60' 

3.  Grey  shale,  thickness,  10' 

4.  Grey  limestone,  thickness,  <•  Bedford  shale,  <j  5/,to    0,g,, 

5.  Calcareous  shale,  thickness,  j  I  •   •   •  *' 

6.  Black  bituminous  shale,  -\  •  .   .   .  27' 

7.  Gray  shale,  >   Cleveland  shale,  <   .   •   •  7' 

8.  Black  shale,  like  No.  6,  >  '  .  .  .  50' 

9.  Grey  shale  to  water-level—Erie  Shale, 40'  " 

(Geol.  Ohio,  vol.  2,  p.  215.) 


PITIIOLE  GRIT.  III.  97 

§  246.  The  Red  SJiale  belt.— In  Pennsylvania  this  par- 
ticular stratum  of  red  shale  seems  to  have  been  deposited 
in  a  long  irregular  and  comparatively  narrow  belt,*  seldom 
more  than  12  or  15  miles  in  width.  It  is  well  developed  at 
New  Castle,  which  is  probably  near  the  center  of  the  de- 
posit ;  but  only  traces  of  it  show  at  Sharon,  on  the  north, 
and  none  is  seen  at  Beaver  Falls,  on  the  south. 

In  Ohio,  red  shales  are  noted  at  various  places  between 
East  Cleveland  and  the  Vermilion  river,  and  the  limiting 
lines  of  the  formation  may  therefore  be  traced  approxi- 
mately as  shown  on  page  92  above.  The  continuity  and 
constancy  of  this  red  band  over  such  a  stretch  of  country 
can  hardly  be  without  some  important  significance  in  a 
study  of  the  structure  where  the  deposit  is  found. 


CHAPTER  IX. 
The  two  oil  belts. 

{Illustrated  by  Plates  V,  VI,  VII;  and  diagrams,  on  pages  99,  101,  IDS.] 

§  247.  No  direct  connection^  has  yet  been  discovered  be- 
tween the  Upper  or  Tidioute-Bullion  oil  belt,  and  the  Lower 
or  Clarion-Butler  Oil  belt.f 

§  248.  The  Upper  belt. — The  present  southern  termina- 
tion of  the  line  of  productive  wells  on  the  Upper  belt,  is 

*  The  supposed  limits  of  this  belt  are  marked  by  dotted  lines  upon  the 
little  map  on  page  92,  above. 

f  The  popular  names  Upper  and  Lower  Oil  belts  have  no  geological  value, 
the  rocks  being  the  same.  They  do  not  mean  two  oil  formations  one  lying 
over  the  over;  but  two  parallel  strips  of  oil-producing  territory  one  further 
up  country  from  Pittsburg  than  the  other.  It  is  a  purely  geographical  dis- 
tinction and  has  its  convenience  in  being  understood  and  used  habitually  by 
all  oil  men.  The  two  names  arose  naturally  out  of  the  fact  that  the  Upper 
Belt  was  first  developed,  far  north,  and  high  up  the  valley  of  the  Allegheny 
river ;  while  the  later  developed  Lower  Belt  lies  to  the  south  and  east  of  the 
other,  and  crosses  the  river  valley  as  low  down  on  the  Allegheny  river  as 
Parker  in  Armstrong  county. 

7  III. 


98  III.     REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

near  Clintonville  in  Venango  county.  This  is  about  12 
miles  northwest  of  Columbia  Hill  in  Butler  county,  which 
is  the  nearest  point  of  development  on  the  Lower  belt. 

§  249.  The  Lower  belt  is  known  to  extend  south-south- 
westerly from  Columbia  Hill  into  Summit  township,  Butler 
county,  some  20  miles  ;  and  northeasterly  into  Elk  town- 
ship, Clarion  county,  some  15  miles.  (See  Map  and  Section, 
Plate  IX.) 

§  250.  The  interval  between  the  belts. — The  area  of  coun- 
try separating  the  two  belts  (say  12  miles  between  Clinton- 
ville and  Columbia  Hill,  and  17  miles  between  Oil  City  and 
Shippenville)  has  been  tested  in  hundreds  of  places  with 
results  in  most  cases  quite  unsatisfactory.  Nevertheless, 
several  good  pools  of  oil  have  been  discovered,  one  on  Slate 
run  and  one  at  Gas  City,  both  in  Cranberry  township,  Ve- 
nango county  ;  and  subsequently  one  at  Six-Points,  near 
Crawford's  Corners,  on  the  Venango-Butler  county  line, 
about  3  miles  west  of  Emlenton,  the  development  of  which 
is  now  progressing.  These  however  do  not  establish  a  con- 
nection between  the  belts  ;  for  the  stratification  is  somewhat 
irregular  throughout  all  this  district,  as  far  as  known,  and 
the  continuity  of  the  oil-producing  rocks  seems  to  be  here 
interrupted. 

We  cannot  therefore  speak  of  the  Upper  belt  as  being 
directly  connected  by  a  line  of  paying  wells  with  the  Lower  ; 
yet  the  main  structural  features  of  the  group  in  the  Upper 
belt  are  observable  across  the  interval,  and  the  rocks  them- 
selves reappear  with  their  characteristic  aspect  as  soon  as 
the  Lower  belt  is  reached. 

§  251.  The  two  belts  are  of  the  same  age. — That  the  de- 
posits of  the  Lower  belt  have  been  subjected  to  more  vicis- 
situdes of  water  level  than  those  of  the  Upper  belt,  result- 
ing in  a  greater  number  of  alternating  bands  of  sandstone 
and  shale  within  the  vertical  limits  of  the  group,  seems 
evident :  yet  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  the  deposits  in  the 
two  belts  were  being  laid  down  at  one  and  the  same  time. 
They  occupy  the  same  geological  horizon ;  they  are  asso- 
ciated with  similar  strata ;  and  they  exhibit  a  like  parallel- 
ism of  structure.  Geologcally,  therefore,  the  two  belts  may 


Plate  XXIV.  III.  9  9 

The  Six  Petroiia  wells. 

1.  Tlieir  geographical  positions. 


Morehead&L.  JV?2. 


2.  The  basal  plane  of  the  ferriferous  limestone. 

Its  height  above  tide,and  amount  of  slope  in  feet. 


J.  Tlie  basal  plane  of  the  Mountain  sand  group 

Its  height  above  tide.arid  amount  of  slope  in  feet. 


100  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 


be  viewed  as  one  and  may  be  studied  and  described  accord- 
ingly. 

§  252.  The  Ferriferous  limestone  is  the  drillers'  key- 
rock  in  Butler  county  and  in  some  parts  of  Clarion.  In  all 
places  where  it  is  found  he  knows  very  nearly  the  depth  to 
which  his  well  should  be  sunk.  The  interval  between  the 
limestone  and  the  Oil  Sands  varies  indeed  somewhat  in  dif- 
ferent places ;  but  the  rate  of  the  variation,  in  any  given 
direction  is  soon  ascertained  as  development  advances,  and 
the  well-sinker  seldom  makes  a  mistake  in  his  calculations. 

§  253.  From  the  Ferriferous  limestone  down  to  the  Oil 
sand  group  the  distance  is  astonishingly  constant,  as  will 
be  seen  from  the  following  tables : 


DISTANCE  FROM  BASE  OF  FERRIFEKOUS  LIME- 
STONE TO  TOP  OF 

1st  SS. 

3dSS. 

4th  SS. 

In  the  Upper  Belt. 
At  Bullion 

870± 

823 
847 
860 
898 
942 
980 

'905 
947 

910 
882 
919 
916 
933 
902 
950 

1105 
1100 
1075 
1140 
1147 
•  1205 
1205 
1190 
1226 

1189 
1182 
1129 
1155 
1165 
1185 
1173 

1170 

1152 
1152 
1155 
1214 
1217 
1285 
1275 
1270 
1308 

1234 
1249 
1189 
1228 

1270 
1266 

In  the  Lower  Belt. 
Edenburg  (McGrew  No.  4),  

Columbia  Hill  (Columbia  No.  4),   
Parker  (Sheasley),     

Sheakley  Station  (Ed.  Bennet),  

Petrolia  (Hazel  wood  No  21) 

Karns  (Matteson  &  McDonald),  

Millerstown,  
St.  Joe  (Mead  well),  

Carbon  Centre  (Thompson),     

Across  the  Lower  Belt  ;  E,  &  W. 
Greece  (Morrison),     ...••...           
Modoo  (Sweepstakes),      
Fairview  (Sutton  No.  4),     
Between  Petrolia  and  Kama  (Evans  No.  21)   ,  .   .   . 
Frederick  (Kern  No.  6), 

Crisswell  (  Boss  Well) 

§  254.  The  variability  of  the  distance  in  different  locali- 
ties, observable  in  the  above  table  is  certainly  less  than 
might  be  looked  for  under  the  circumstances.  For  the 
limestone  itself  is  slightly  undulating  ;  the  sandrocks,  also 
are  locally  irregular ;  and  the  drillers  measurements  are 
always  subject  to  unavoidable  accidental  inaccuracies. 

§  205.  The  maximum  of  interval  appears,  curiously 
enough,  to  lie  vertically  underneath  the  maximum  of  lime- 


Plate  XXV. 


III.  101 


The  SixPetrolia  wells. 


4.  The  plane  of  the  top  of  the  Oil  sand  group. 

Its  height  above  llde.cuicl  amount  of  slope  infect. 


,140'. 


149 


The  plane  of  the  top  of  the  Third  Oil  sand. 

Itsheiqht  above  tide,  and  amount  of  slope  infect. 


-K5 


6.  The  basal  plane  of  the  Oil  sand  group. 

Its  height  above  tide,  and  amount  of  slope  in  feet. 


Scale  6400=1  Inch. 


102  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHX  F.   CARLL. 

stone  ;  that  is  in  the  central  portion  of  the  great  water-basin  in 
which  the  limestone  was  deposited.  Now,  if  this  be  anything 
more  than  an  accidental  coincidence,  it  suggests  the  proba- 
bility that  the  interval  does  not  keep  on  increasing  south- 
westward,  southward  and  southeastward  from  Butler,  where 
both  it  and  the  limestone  have  reached  their  maxima  of 
thickness  ;  but  that  it  will  be  less  at  Beaver  Falls,  Pitts- 
burgh, Tarentum  and  Millville,  where  the  limestone  is  com- 
paratively thin.  The  sections  to  be  given  presently  sup- 
port this  view  of  the  case. 

§  256.  Local  variability  of  the  oil  sands. — To  illustrate 
the  local  variations  which  occur  in  so-called  parallel  strata, 
not  only  in  one  locality  and  at  one  horizon,  but  everywhere 
and  in  all  sedimentary  rocks,  we  give  below  an  analytical 
study  of  the  six  wells  measured  carefully  for  the  survey, 
while  being  bored,  near  Petrolia,  in  six  little  diagrams  and 
two  vertical  profile-sections,  showing  the  undulations  of 
limestone  and  sandrock  over  a  small  area,*  A  glance  at 
these  sections  will  suffice  to  impress  upon  the  mind  the  rad- 
ical contrast  between  the  rude  symmetry  of  nature  and  the 
absolute  parallelism  of  human  art. 

§  257.  Sufficient  data  may  be  found  in  the  chapter  on  the 
Venango  Oil  group, — in  the  diagram  showing  the  dip  of 
the  Oil  Sands  (Plate  VIII),— and  in  other  parts  of  this  Re- 
port, to  prove  that  the  Venango  and  Butler  oil-rocks  were 
cotemporaneous  deposits  and  have  a  similar  general  struc- 
ture throughout  the  oil  producing  districts.  But  in  look- 
ing for  a  geographical  extension  of  the  Oil  Sand  group 
from  the  Butler  oil  field  towards  the  southwest,  south  and 
southeast,  very  important  and  significant  stratigraphical 
changes  are  noticeable  ;  so  that  any  proposed  identification 
of  the  Butler  rocks  in  wells  at  Pittsburgh,  at  Tarentum,  or 
at  places  further  round  toward  the  east,  must  demand  care- 
ful consideration. 

To  illustrate  these  changes,  and  the  numerous  obstacles 
they  place  in  the  way  of  such  identifications,  I  have  pre- 
sented on  Plates  V,  VI  and  VII,  four  series  of  grouped 
well  sections,  selected  along  lines  starting  from  the  oil  belt 
where  all  the  features  of  its  stratification  are  well  known, 

*  Plates  XXIV,  XXV,  XXVI. 


Plaie  XXVI.  III.  103 

TheSixPetrolia  wells. 

l.JVbrihern  line  of  the  polygon. 


K" 

Tide 

1.                                NO  2                                                   N?  6            TOe.^ 

>ioi»     JSase  of 
+M6      Jiase   of 

+ii»7  m^  tfernf.  .Lime. 
as£  Mountain-  sands. 

•-1U74 
€90 

•mo      Top  of 

449   Oil-  sand,-  group. 

+140 

fe] 

-no      Top  of 

-93      Third-  oil-sand. 

-19^ 

pS 

Of 

^) 

J$a#e  of          Oil -sand -group. 


2.  Southern  line  of  the  polygon  < 


2K 

Ti'rfe 

1.                                               N93.                     N94.                                 N9 

'<* 

•Ml               ^«*e   o/* 

^648^1/OZ^/:." 

H033  Limestone. 
K52»  sands. 

noo           Toff  of  Oil 

+119'  &ctnd 

110'            Top     of 

-120'  Third 

4U  oil-sand. 

1 

-19tf                                 7 

-i\i 

-211 

/-  sand-group. 


Vertical  sccde  8OO':l" 


<Note.  Figures  in  ovals  GSb&c.are  calculated. 


104  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOim  F.  CARLL. 

and  running  out  in  different  directions  into  this  unknown 
territory  thus  : — 

Series  1.  A  line  from  the  Mead  well,  near  St.  Joe  in  Done- 
gal township,  Butler  county,  to  Tarentum  in  Allegheny 
county.  (Plate  V.  Figs.  13/14,  15,  16,  17,  18.) 

Series  2.  From  Petrolia  in  Fairview  township,  Butler 
county,  to  the  Cherry  Run  well  in  Toby  township,  Clarion 
county.  (Plate  V,  Figs.  19,  20,  21.) 

Series  3.  From  Oil  City  and  Franklin  in  Yenango  county, 
to  Clarion  in  Clarion  county.  (Plate  VI,  Figs.  22,  23,  24, 
25,  26,  27,  28,  29,  30.) 

Series  4.  A  cross  line  connecting  the  ends  of  the  other 
three,  from  Pittsburg  to  Tarentum,  Cherry  run,  Clarion 
and  the  James  well,  7  miles  northeast  of  Clarion.  (Plate 
VII,  Figs.  31,  32,  33,  34,  35,  36,  37,  38,  39.) 

These  four  series  of  selected  well-records  will  be  discussed 
in  the  following  chapters. 


CHAPTER  X. 

Series  No.  1,  Plate  V.   from  St.  Joe  to  Tarentum. 

S&ries  No.  3,  Plate  V.      from  Petrolia  to  Cherry  run. 

§  258.  Fig.  13.  Mead  well  near  St.  Joe,  in  Donegal  town- 
ship, Butler  county  (I.I.  No.  1173).  This  record  was  made 
from  memory  by  the  owner  and  the  driller,  who  both  as- 
serted that  it  was  as  accurate  as  any  written  record  could 
be.  It  makes  the  interval  between  the  Ferriferous  lime- 
stone and  the  oil  group  less  than  is  given  in  other  wells  in 
that  vicinity.  The  well  produced  a  large  quantity  of  oil. 

Fig.  14..  Thompson  well  at  Carbon  Centre,  Summit  town- 
ship, Butler  county  (I.I.  No.  1175).  This  well  produced  oil 
from  the  3d  sand  and  was  afterwards  sunk  to  the  4th,  where 
a  flow  of  gas  was  obtained  sufficient  to  fire  20  boilers  at  the 
neighboring  wells,  without  any  further  increase  of  oil.  Sup- 
posed to  be  a  reliable  record. 

§  259.  Fig.  15.  Summit  well  near  Herman  Station,  Sum- 
mit township,  Butler  county,  (Appendix.)  A  fragmentary 
record  but  good  as  far  as  it  goes.  This  well  was  but  a  small 
producer  of  oil  being  apparently  near  the  southwestern  ter- 
mination of  the  Butler  productive  oil  belt. 

§  260.  Fig.  16.  Harvey  gas  well  at  Larden's  Mills,  Clinton 
township, 'Butler  county  (LI.  No.  1181).  The  first  great  gas 
well  from  which  pipes  were  laid  to  Sharpsburg,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  utilizing  the  gas  as  fuel  in  the  manufacture  of  iron. 
(See  Natural  Gas  in  Iron  working,  Report  L.)  Record  from 
memory  but  said  to  be  correct. 

§  261.  Fig.  17.  Mohan  well,  Middlesex  township  Butler 
county  (I.I.  No.  1182  and  Q.  page  81).  This  well  produced 
a  little  amber  colored  oil  from  the  "1st  SS."  and  black  oil 
at  a  lower  horizon,  but  both  in  unremunerative  quantities. 
Two  versions  of  the  record  are  given  by  the  owners,  but 
they  do  not  differ  in  material  points. 

§  262.  Fig.  18.  Graff,  Bennett  &  Co.' s  well  at  Tarentum, 

(105  III.) 


106  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Allegheny  county,  £  Appendix. )  Xo  oil  was  found  in  this 
well.  It  produced  only  gas  and  salt  water.  The  record 
was  carefully  kept  and  the  measures  passed  through  at 
this  point  appear  to  contain  an  unusual  amount  of  fine 
sandy  sediment. 

§  263.  Three  horizontal  lines  across  Plate  V  will  be 
noticed  by  the  reader. 

The  upper  line  is  intended  to  show  the  approximate  jflace 
of  the  Ferriferous  limestone. 

The  middle  line  indicates  the  approximate  base  of  the 
sandy  measures  belonging  to  the  Mountain  Sand  series. 

The  lower  line  limits  approximately  the  top  of  the  Ye- 
nango  group  of  oil-bearing  rocks.  These  lines  will  guide 
the  eye  across  the  plate,  and  enable  one  to  make  compari- 
sons more  readily. 

§  264.  The  Ferriferous  limestone  is  shown  in  all  the  sec- 
tions except  in  that  of  the  Mahan  well ;  and  here  its  hori- 
zon is  plainly  indicated  by  the  coal  beds  which  accompany 
it,  which  are  placed  at  290  feet,  and  640  feet,  (round  num- 
bers. )  The  upper  coal  bed,  underlaid  by  a  limestone,  (whose 
thickness,  20  feet,  is  no  doubt  exaggerated,)  must  be  the 
Freeport  Upper  coal.  The  lower  one  must  be  either  the 
Clarion  or  the  Brookville  coal.  The  horizon  of  the  Ferrif- 
erous limestone,  then,  may  be  considered  as  well  estab- 
lished in  all  the  sections. 

§  265.  But  the  base  of  the  sandstones  beneath  the  Fer- 
riferous limestone  seems  ill-defined;  partly  by  reason  of 
the  incompleteness  of  the  records  ;  and  partly  because  our 
line  of  study  is  not  geographically  coincident  with  the  trend 
of  deposition.  In  addition  to  this,  it  passes  over  the 
Brady's  Bend  synclinal  and  anticlinal,  and  wrell  down  into 
the  fifth  coal  basin.* 

§  266.  Crawford  Shales. — Wherever  the  normal  type  of 

*On  the  theory  generally  accepted  that  the  anticlinal  and  synclinal  struc- 
ture of  the  country  was  accomplished  as  a  whole,  after  the  close  of  the  car- 
boniferous era,  any  reference  to  the  Brady's  Bend  anticlinal  and  synclinal  in 
this  discussion  is  unnecessary,  since  they  did  not  exist  when  the  Oil  group 
and  Conglomerate  rocks  were  deposited;  but  there  is  a  feeling  with  some 
geologists  that  the  beginnings  of  the  crust  movements  may  have  taken  place 
early  in  the  coal  era ;  and  been  only  consummated  at  its  close. 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  107 

stratification  observed  along  the  Oil  belt  does  not  obtain, 
there  the  structure  becomes  obscure.  The  shaly  interval 
between  the  Mountain  sands  and  the  Oil  sands,  (the  Craw- 
ford shales, )  referred  to  more  particularly  in  Chapter  VIII, 
when  not  found  with  its  characteristic  Pithole  grit  near  the 
center,  may  contain  other  sands  in  its  upper  or  its  lower 
part ;  and  such  sandy  deposits  might  easily  be  mistaken 
for  members  of  the  Mountain  Sand  group  above,  or  of  the 
Oil  Sand  group  below.  For  example — 

§  267.  A  Shaly  Sandstone  close  over  the  First  Oil-sand 
is  noted  in  the  well-records  of  some  localities. 

This  shaly  sandstone,  if  we  were  not  so  well  acquainted 
with  the  constitution  of  the  Oil  group,  might  be  considered 
a  part  of  it.  But,  after  ascertaining  the  normal  structure 
by  the  examination  of  hundreds  of  well-sections,  we  can 
say  without  hesitation,  in  cases  where  the  integrity  of  the 
oilsand  group  is  best  preserved  without  it,  that  this  sandy 
stratum  must  be  merely  a  local  interpolation  of  coarser  ma- 
terial in  the  muddy  measures  above  the  Oil-sands. 

There  is  a  great  deal  of  sandy  matter  all  through  the 
Crawford  shale  in  some  localities,  and  there  can  be  little 
doubt  that  occasional  and  local  beds  of  sand  were  being 
spread  over  parts  of  its  area  during  the  whole  time  of  its 
deposition.  Changes  of  current  and  material  undoubtedly 
took  place. 

We  have  a  striking  proof  of  this  in  the  fact  that  in  one 
district  red  shale  was  deposited  immediately  upon  the  First 
Oil  sand,  at  the  commencement  of  the  Crawford  shale  for- 
mation. 

In  another  place  a  few  feet  of  blue  shale  was  deposited 
first  and  then  the  red  shale  ;  and  in  another  place  blue  shale 
first  and  then  sand.  Why  not  then  in  other  places  sand 
upon  sand ;  that  is,  a  Crawford  shale-sandstone  upon  the 
First  Oil  sand  ? 

The  line  of  division,  then,  separating  the  Oil  sand  group 
from  the  Crawford  shale  group,  would  be  locally  an  arbi- 
trary one,  and  could  only  be  drawn  in  agreement  with  the 
harmony  of  structure  above  and  below  it,  rather  than  from 


108  III.   EEPOKT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

any  evidence  furnished  by  the  sand  and  shaly-sand  deposits 
themselves. 

These  remarks  apply  with  equal  force  to  the  junction 
plane  between  the  top  of  the  Crawford  shale  group  and  the 
sandstone  group  above  it. 

§  268.  The  three  geological  divisions  which  have  been 
adopted,  (Oil  group,  Crawford  shale,  and  Mountain  sands,) 
appear  in  fact  to  blend  together  in  such  a  way  that  no  ab- 
solute planes  of  separation  can  be  discovered  between  them 
in  the  oil  well  sections,  except  in  certain  localities,  where 
the  conditions  have  been  most  favorable  for  marking  in  a 
sharp  and  decisive  manner  the  principal  changes  of  de- 
posit.* 

*In  eastern  Pennsylvania,  the  measures  between  Chemung  rocks  and  Serai 
Conglomerate  (No.  XII)  are  of  great  thickness  and  the  sediments  seem  to  be 
easily  divisible  into  the  three  groups,  named  by  Prof.  Rogers,  TJmbral,  Ves- 
pertine and  Ponent,  and  in  the  Reports  of  the  Second  Survey,  Mauch  Chunk 
red  shale,  Poc4no  gray  sandstone  and  Catskill  red  sandstone. 

At  Broadtop  City,  Huntingdon  County,  Mr.  Ashburner  gives  their  several 
thicknesses  as  follows.  (See  Report  F.) 

Mauch  Chunk  red  shale  (Umbral), 1100' 

Pocono  sandstone  (Vespertine), 2133' 

Catskill  red  shale  (Ponent,) 2680' 

Total 5913' 

At  Liockhaven,  Clinton  County,  Mr.  Chance  gives  the  following  section  of 
them  :  in  Report  F. 

Mauch  Chunk  red  shale  (Umbral),     100' 

Pocono  sandstone  (Vespertine), 1175' 

Catskill  red  sandstone  and  shale  (Ponent), 2106' 

Total, 3381' 

In  Venango  county  the  total  mass  of  all  three  formations  has  evidently 
thinned  down  to  800'  or  900',  and  with  this  diminution  of  volume  there  ap- 
pears a  corresponding  alteration  in  the  distinguishing  lithological  character- 
istics of  the  several  groups,  and  their  characteristic  fossils  seem  to  be  promis- 
cuously intermixed,  so  that  the  palaeontological  planes  of  distinction  se'em  to 
disappear.  In  one  place  Chemuug  and  Catskill  rocks  cannot  be  distinguished 
apart  by  their  fossil  contents.  At  another  place  the  Catskill  cannot  be  sepa- 
rated from  the  Pocono.  At  another  place  the  Pocono  sandstone  group  (Ves- 
pertine) apparently  merges  into  the  Pottsville  conglomerate  group  (Serai); 
and  the  intermediate  Mauch  Phunk,  (Umbral)  seems  to  have  disappeared  en- 
tirely, or  if  present  cannot  be  recognized  by  color,  constitution  or  fossils. 

Any  single  section  of  the  rocks,  as  at  Tarentum  for  instance,  would"  furnish 
a  very  deceptive  identification  with  strata  of  the  same  age  in  Eastern  and 
Middle  Pennsylvania. 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  109 

§  269.  The  three  horizontal  lines  across  the  sections  on 
Plate  V,  while  agreeing  approximately  with  the  vertical  in- 
tervals assigned  to  these  measures  in  generalized  section 
Plate  XI,  must  not  be  considered  to  represent  absolute 
planes  of  division  between  established  geological  forma- 
tions. They  merely  accentuate  to  the  eye  of  the  reader 
the  prominent  groups  of  sandstone  and  shale  strata  pene- 
trated by  the  oil  wells ;  and  render  unmistakably  visible 
their  really  distinct  characters  and  their  succession  in  the 
order  of  time. 

The  structure  of  the  sections  under  review  being  thus 
analysed,  we  reach  the  following  results,  viz : 

§  270.  1.  The  sandy  measures  shown  in  the  Tarentum 
well  (Fig.  18,)  from  1218  feet  to  1362  feet,  seem  to  mark  the 
upper  part  of  the  Butler  Oil-group.  * 

§  271.  2.  The  Gas-sand  of  the  Harvey  well  (Fig.  16)  is 
seen  to  lie  above  the  Oil  group. 

The  structure  of  the  Crawford  shale  mass  here  seems  to 
be  quite  the  reverse  of  what  it  is  along  the  Venango  belt ; 
shales  occupy  the  middle  portion,  and  sandy  measures  the 
top  and  bottom  ;  in  other  words,  the  Pithole  grit  is  absent. 

The  Mahan  well,  Fig.  17,  exhibits  similar  features ;  and 
many  other  wells  of  the  same  class  might  be  mentioned. 

§  272.  3.  The  (so  called )  First  sand  of  the  Butler  county 
driller,  lying  near  the  bottom  (or  in  the  lower  part)  of  the 
Crawford  shale,  is  (as  shown  in  Chapter  XII)  not  the  First 
sand  of  Venango  county,  but  a  higher  rock.  The  Second 
sand  of  Butler  is  undoubtedly  the  First  sand  of  Venango. 

This  (so  called)  First  sand  of  Butler  is  quite  variable  in 
both  position  and  thickness,  and  is  frequently  absent  alto- 
gether ;  as  may  be  seen  in  records  published  in  Report  I.I. 

In  the  Harvey  well  (Fig.  16)  it  lies  65'  above  the  top  hori- 
zon-plane of  the  Oil-group,  as  shown  by  the  records  of  other 
wells  in  the  neighborhood. 

*  I  have  two  specimens  of  sand  purnpings,  one  from  1220' ;  the  other  from 
1287'.  The  former  might  properly  be  called  a  dark  micaceous  sandy  shale; 
the  latter  is  a  clean,  fine-grained,  white  sandstone.  The  top  of  the  First  Oil 
sand  probably  lies  somewhere  between  the  two  points  from  whence  these 
specimens  came. 


110  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

In  the  Mead  well  (Fig.  13)  it  is  marked  at  110'  above  the 
oil  group. 

In  fact  well-records  of  different  sections  are  so  incongru- 
ous in  their  location  of  this  so-called  Butler  "First  Sand," 
that  it  is  clearly  not  a  continuous  sand  sheet,  but  a  series 
of  comparatively  local  beds  deposited  at  various  levels  in 
the  lower  part  of  the  (Crawford)  shaly  interval  coming  in 
above  the  Oil  group. 

§  273.  Gas  well  horizons. — But  whatever  this  "First 
sand"  of  Butler  may  be,  it  is  frequently  a  gas-producing 
rock ;  and  so  notably  in  some  localities  as  to  receive  from 
the  drillers  the  name  of  "gas-sand"  Many  wells  however 
pass  through  it  without  obtaining  gas. 

Prof.  White  says  (Report  Q  page  84)  "Just  east  from 
this  [The  Harvey  or  Lardintown  well],  one  fourth  of  a  mile, 
a  well  was  commenced  at  a  surface  level  of  125  feet  above 
the  Lardintown  well  and  bored  to  the  depth  of  1772'.  It 
struck  no  gas  of  any  importance  until  the  bottom  was 
reached,  when  a  very  large  supply  was  obtained.  It  was 
not  so  strong  as  the  Lardintown  well  however." 

At  this  locality  the  rocks  are  rising  rather  rapidly  to  the 
northwest,  and  I  have  no  means  of  ascertaining  the  precise 
geological  relations  of  the  two  well  mouths ;  but  it  is  evi- 
dent that  the  deep  well  above  referred  to  obtained  its  gas 
from  a  rock  lying  about  500'  below  the  Harvey  well  gas- 
sand  ;  and  a  reference  to  the  Thompson  well- section  (Fig. 
14)  shows  that  this  rock  must  be  the  "Fourth  sand"  the 
same  stratum  which  furnished  the  large  flow  of  gas 'in  that 
well,  and  which  also,  further  to  the  north,  produced  the 
celebrated  gas-wells  known  as  the  Burns  and  the  Delemater, 
near  St.  Joe. 

§  274.  But  attention  should  be  called  to  the  fact  that?  the 
production  of  gas  is  not  confined  to  any  one  particular 
stratum  of  our  oil  measures. 

We  have  powerful  gas  wells  in  McKean  county  from  Che- 
mung  rocks  1000'  or  more  below  the  Venango  oil  group. 

The  gas  at  Fredonia,  IS".  Y.,  and  Erie  on  the  lake  shore 
comes  from  still  lower  strata. 

As  to  our  Yenango  oil-group — gas  is  in  the  Fourth  sand, 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  Ill 

in  the  Third,  in  the  Second,  in  the  First,  and  in  sands  higher 
still  in  the  series,  above  the  oil-group,  as  we  have  just  seen. 
At  all  these  horizons  heavy  gas- wells  have  been  obtained, 
in  different  places,  at  one  time  or  another.  It  appears  to 
be  an  universal  product,  confined  to  no  particular  horizon 
or  locality  ;  but  why  it  is  found  in  this  place  in  one  rock, 
in  that  in  another,  is  as  much  a  matter  of  speculation  as  are 
the  questions  concerning  its  origin  and  the  sources  of  its 
supply. 


Series  No.  8,  Plate  V.    From  Petrolia  to  Cherry  run. 

§  275.  This  series  consists  of  only  three  wells,  as  fol- 
lows : 

Fig.  19.  Evans  well  No.  21  (I.I.  No.  1201)  four  fifths  of  a 
mile  southwest  of  Petrolia,  measured  for  the  survey  by 
John  H.  Carll,  and  specimens  of  sand  pumpings  preserved. 

Fig.  20.  Binkard  well  No.  1  (I.I.  No.  1163)  Perry  town- 
ship, Armstrong  county. 

Fig.  21.  Cherry  run  well,  Plyer  farm,  near  the  centre  of 
Toby  township,  Clarion  county  (Appendix). 

These  sections  are  all  reliable  and  the  structure  is  so  plain 
that  no  comment  is  necessary. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

Series  No.  3,  Plate  VI.     From  Oil  City  to  Clarion. 

§  276.  This  series  consists  of  nine  borings,  full  records 
of  which  may  be  found  either  in  Report  1. 1.,  or  in  the  Ap- 
pendix to  this  volume. 

Fig.  22.  Hains  well,  on  Halliday  run,  Oil  City,  Venango 
county. 

Fig.  23.  Washington  well,  near  P.  T.  and  B.  Ry.  station, 
Franklin. 


112  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Fig.  24.  McGreio  well  (I.I.  No.  1059)  near  Halls  run,  Cran- 
berry townspip,  Venango  county. 

Fig.  25.  Oelsclilager  well  No.  1  (I.I.  No.  1116)  Ashland 
township,  Clarion  co. 

Fig.  26.  Schreiber  well,  Strotman  farm,  Elk  township. 
Clarion  co. 

Fig.  27.  Columbia  Oil  Co.  well  No.  19,  H.  Keiser  farm, 
near  Edenburg,  Wheatiand  township,  Clarion  co. 

Fig.  28.  'Hope  well  (I.I.  No.  1117)  1  m.  N.  W.  of  Shippen- 
ville,  Elk  township,  Clarion  co. 

Fig.  29.  Rohrer  well  No.  2,  on  a  branch  of  Deer  creek, 
1£  m.  south  of  Shippenville,  Elk  tp.,  Clarion  co. 

Fig.  30.  Griswold  well,  Rattlesnake  G-ulch,  near  Clarion, 
Clarion  co. 

§  277.  Scattered  over  quite  a  wide  area  these  well- sections 
afford  an  excellent  opportunity  for  comparing  the  oil-rocks 
of  the  old  Venango  district  with  those  of  Clarion  county, 
and  a  short  study  of  them  must  convince  any  one  that  the 
lower  line  drawn  across  the  plate  approximately  represents 
the  top  plane  of  the  Venango  Oil-group  in  all  the  wells. 

§  278.  None  of  the  sections  commence  high  enough  to 
catch  the  Ferriferous  limestone;  but  its  position  has  been 
calculated  at  the  Washington  well  from  one  of  its  most 
northerly  outcrops  in  Cranberry  township ;  and  it  is  seen 
near  Columbia  well,  No.  19,  lying  only  2'  above  the  level 
of  the  well-mouth.  These  are  the  only  places  where  we 
have  the  data  for  locating  it ;  but  a  line  drawn  across  the 
sections  through  these  two  points  will  indicate  very  nearly 
its  horizon  at  all  of  the  other  wells. 

§  279.  The  Mountain  sands  are  not  shown  in  Figs.  22, 
24,  26  and  29,  simply  because  the  drillers  omitted  to  note 
them  in  the  records. 

The  bottom  member  of  the  Mountain- sand  group,  in  Fig. 
23,  is  supplied  from  quarries  opened  in  the  hillside  above 
the  well-mouth,  and  also  in  several  places  at  Franklin. 

§  280.  The  Pithole  grit  is  also  supplied,  in  Fig.  23,  from 
other  wells  in  the  vicinity ;  but  it  appears  of  diminished 
size  in  the  wells  to  the  southeast  of  section,  Fig.  24 ;  not 
only  thin,  but  graduating  into  shale. 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  113 

§  281.  The  Eohrer  well,  No.  2,  section,  (Fig.  29,)  is  quite 
imperfect  in  the  upper  part ;  and  it  is  only  given  because 
it  goes  down  to  an  unusual  depth.  The  following  notes  ac- 
company the  record,  and  suggest  what  must  be  inserted  in 
order  to  make  it  complete. 

"The  regular  strata  of  first,  second  and  third  sands  were 
passed  through,  but  we  kept  no  record  of  the  first  and  sec- 
ond sands. "  "  Water  was  cased  off  at  260  feet. ' '  No  doubt 
just  below  the  Mountain  sands,  as  is  usually  the  case.  We 
thus  get  the  approximate  place  of  the  base  of  these  sands. 

"The  first  red  rock  was  struck  at  660  feet."  As  there  is 
no  red  rock  above  the  first  sand  in  this  region,  the  first  sand 
must  have  already  been  passed.  We  may  fairly  presume, 
also,  as  they  were  evidently  drilling  without  noting  details 
in  this  part  of  the  well,  that  the  red  rocks  above  the  "Big 
red"  were  overestimated  for  the  Second  Oil  sand  should 
come  in  here. 

With  these  additions  and  corrections  (and  they  are  evi- 
dently called  for)  the  section  will  be  similar  to  the  very  re- 
liable one  furnished  by  the  Hope  well  (Fig.  28). 

§  282.  Red  sliale  above  the  Oil  Sand  group. — One  of  the 
most  noticeable  features  in  this  group  of  sections  is  the 
manner  in  which  the  red  rocks  vary. 

Tn  Fig.  23,  115'  of  red  shale  is  seen  above  the  First  sand; 
in  Fig.  24  only  streaks  of  red  mixed  with  grey  ;  and  in  Fig. 
25  it  has  disappeared  entirely. 

This  is  the  red  band  traced  in  chap.  8  all  along  the  Ve- 
nango  belt  and  thence  to  New  Castle  and  so  on  into  Ohio  ; 
but  it  is  not,  to  my  knowledge,  found  above  the  Oil  group 
in  any  part  of  the  Clarion  or  Butler  districts. 

§  283  Red  shale  in  the  Oil  Sand  group. — The^main  red 
rock  of  the  Clarion  field  is  the  "big  red"  or  "blood  rock ;" 
a  stratum  of  dark-red  shale,  (as  its  name  implies,)  from  30' 
to  45'  thick,  lying  between  the  Second  and  Third  sands. 

§  284.  Red  shale  below  the  Oil  Sand  group. — There  are 
nlso  other  red  rocks  interstratified  at  various  levels  with  the 
oil  sands,  and  extending  down  two  or  three  hundred  feet 
below  them,  in  some  localities  to  the  southeast  of  the  oil- 
producing  belt. 
8  III. 


114  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

If  one  had  in  hand  for  comparison  merely  the  sections 
Figs.  23  and  30  he  might  very  naturally  fall  into  the  error 
of  identifying  the  115  foot  red  rock  in  Fig.  23  with  the  90 
foot  red  rock  in  Fig.  30 ;  in  which  case  he  would  suppose 
that  the  measures  between  the  Red  rock  and  the  Ferrifer- 
ous limestone  thickened  toward  the  southeast. 

But  with  the  whole  group  of  sections  before  him,  the 
reader  cannot  make  this  mistake.  The  red  shales  are  plainly 
seen  to  be  local  and  variable  deposits,  occupying  intervals 
in  one  well,  which  are  filled  with  grey  shales  in  another  well 
only  a  short  distance  from  it.  Evidently  these  red  deposits 
are  not  to  be  depended  upon  as  horizons  to  work  from,  ex- 
cept over  restricted  areas,  and  in  certain  directions. 
•  Going  toward  the  southeast  the  red  bands  become  more 
numerous  and  occupy  lower  levels  successively  in  the  oil 
group.  The  general  parallelism  of  the  whole  series,  how- 
ever, being  preserved,  it  is  evident  that  the  red  rocks  seen 
low  down  in  the  oil  group  at  the  southeast  can  have  no  con- 
nection with  those  seen  higher  up  in  the  group  at  the  north- 
west ;  and  that  those  found  to  the  southeast  of  the  produc- 
ing belt,  below  the  place  of  the  oil  group,  can  liave  no  con- 
nection with  those  of  the  oil  group  itself. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

Series  No.  4,  Plate  VII.  From  Plttsburg  to  Clarion 
county. 

§  285.  This  group  of  well  sections  extending,  from  Pitts- 
burg  to  Blyson  run  in  Mill  Creek  township,  Clarion  county,  7 
miles  northeast  of  the  town  of  Clarion,  is  composed  of  nine, 
all  (except  33,  37  and  39)  to  be  found  recorded  in  the  Ap- 
pendix to  this  volume. 

Fig.  31.  Boyd  Hill  well  in  the  city  of  Pittsburgh. 

Fig.  32.  Graff,  Bennett  and  Co."1  s  well  at  Tarentum,  East 
Brady  township,  Allegheny  county  (Fig.  18  in  group  No.  1). 

Fig  33.  Leecliburg  gas  well  (I.I.  No.  1191)  at  Leechr 
burg  Allegheny  township,  Westmoreland  county. 

Fig.  34.  Pine  creek  well,  on  the  Allegheny  river  flat  near 
the  mouth  of  Pine  creek,  Pine  Valley  township,  Armstrong 
county. 

Fig.  35.  Midland  well  No.  1,  at  Millville  on  Red  Bank 
creek,  Red  Bank  twp.,  Clarion  county. 

Fig.  36.  GTierry  Run  well,  on  Cherry  run  a  tributary  of 
Clarion  river,  near  the  centre  of  Toby  township  Clarion 
county.  (Fig.  21  in  group  No.  2). 

Fig.  37.  Sllgo  well  (I.I.  No.  1121)  on  Licking  Creek,  a 
tributary  of  Clarion  river,  Piney  twp.,  Clarion  county. 

Fig.  38.  Griswold  well  No.  1,  Rattlesnake  Gulch,  near 
the  town  of  Clarion.  (Fig.  30,  in  group  No.  3). 

Fig.  39.  James  Well  (I.I.  No.  1120)  Blyson ^run,  Mill 
Creek  township,  7  miles  N.  E.  of  Clarion. 

Boyd  s  Hill,  Pittsburgh  well. 

§  286.  The  section  of  the  Pittsburgh  or  Boyd  Hill  well 
(Fig.  31,)  as  here  given,  differs  somewhat  from  that  pub- 
lished and  commented  upon  in  Appendix  E  to  Report  L. 

When  Prof.  Lesley  examined  the  specimens  of  drillings 
in  Pittsburgh 'they  were  packed,  layer  upon  layer,  in  large 
glass  jars,  in  the  order  in  which  they  came  out  of  the  well ; 

(115  III.) 


116  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

and  consequently  only  the  top  layer  of  each  jar  could  be 
critically  examined.  In  that  shape,  (like  glass  tubes  simi- 
larly packed,  which  many  esteem  so  highly)  they  were  of 
very  little  use  in  studying  the  character  of  the  sediments. 

The  drillers  had  passed  through  the  Ferriferous  lime- 
stone without  noticing  it,  as  it  was  thin  and  lay  nearer  the 
surface  than  they  calculated  and,  mistaking  another  lime- 
stone for  it,  had  given  it  a  place  in  the  record  220'  below  its 
proper  position. 

As  the  specimens  were  packed,  the  drillings  from  the  in- 
terval where  the  Ferriferous  limestone  ought  to  have  been 
found,  and  also  of  the  interval  said  to  contain  limestone, 
were  both  covered  by  other  layers,  and  none  of  the  ma- 
terial could  be  taken  out  for  a  chemical  test.  All  tjiis  cast 
a  shadow  of  uncertainty  over  the  whole  record. 

§  287.  On  one  of  my  visits  to  Pittsburgh,  since  the  pub- 
lication of  Report  L,  the  owners  of  the  well  kindly  made  a 
donation  of  the  whole  collection  of  sand  pumpings  to  the 
survey.  I  carefully  dipped  the  materials  from  the  jars, 
layer  after  layer,  keeping  only  the  central  portion  of  each 
layer,  and  throwing  away  the  top  and  bottom  where  any 
intermixture  of  material  occurred.  Assisted  by  Dr.  Hunter 
with  his  drilling  record  in  hand,  I  put  the  specimens  in 
paper  bags,  marked  them  in  agreement  with  the  record,  and 
shipped  the  whole  to  Pleasantville.  I  have  since  filled  a 
set  of  bottles  and  labeled  them  so  that  each  specimen  may 
be  examined  separately  and  compared  with  any  other  in 
the  large  collection  prepared  in  the  same  manner  for  the 
State  Museum. 

The  section  as  given  on  Plate  VII,  agrees  with  the  speci- 
mens as  thus  arranged  ;  and  there  now  appear  to  be  but 
two  or  three  points  in  the  record  open  to  question ;  and 
these  are  quite  immaterial  in  a  study  of  the  general  struc- 
ture. 

§  288.  Where  the  Ferriferous  limestone  should  be  looked 
for  (taking  the  coal  beds  and  sandstones  of  the  record  for 
guide)  I  found  small  pieces  of  limestone,  intermingled 
with  the  dark  bluish-gray  sandy  shale  drillings.  But  as 
only  one  specimen  of  drillings  through  15  feet  of  well  had 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  117 

* 

been  preserved,  the  thickness  of  the  limerock  and  the  part 
of  the  15  feet  interval  which  it  occupies  must  of  course  re- 
main unknown.  I  judge  that  had  it  been,  say,  more  than 
5  feet  thick,  it  would  have,  compelled  the  attention  of  the 
drillers,  even  although  they  were  looking  for  it  at  another 
horizon. 

§289.  Limestone  is  plainly  to  be  distinguished  also  in 
the  drillings  from  879'  to  914',  where  the  drillers  supposed 
the  Ferriferous  limestone  to  lie;  but  the  geological  sig- 
nificance of  this  we  need  not  stop  to  consider  here. 

§  290.  A  "  White  lime'1'1  is  marked  below  the  Ferriferous 
limestone  in  the  Harvey  and  the  Mahan  well  records  (Figs. 
16  and  17) ;  but  there  is  no  way  of  finding  out  whether  it 
is  really  a  limestone  or  only  a  driller's  name. 

Doubtless  local  deposits  of  limy  strata  would  frequently 
be  found  at  various  horizons  in  the  oil  wells  if  the  sand- 
pumpings  were  carefully  tested  ;  but  no  attention  is  given 
to  such  strata,  except  when  some  test-well  is  being  put 
down  where  the  position  of  the  Ferriferous  limestone  is 
not  known,  and  it  becomes  necessary  to  watch  for  it  with 
unusual  care.  Traces  of  limestone  are  sometimes  thus 
brought  into  notice  which  otherwise  would  have  been  over- 
looked, and  which  are  seldom  heard  of  again  in  subse- 
quent adjacent  wells,  after  once  the  proper  position  of  the 
Ferriferous  limestone  has  been  ascertained. 


§  291.  The  extent  of  country  over  which  these  sections  are 
distributed  may  be  seen  from  the  following  rough  measure- 
ment of  distances : 

From  Mead  well  (Fig.  13)  to  Pittsburgh  (Fig.  31),  in  a 
direct  line,  35  miles. 

From  Evans  well  No.  21  (Fig.  19)  to  Millville  well  (Fig. 
35),  22  miles. 

From  Franklin  (Fig.  23)  to  Clarion  (Fig.  38),  25  miles. 

From  Pittsburgh  (Fig.  31)  to  James  well  (Fig.  39),  67 
miles. 

§  292.  In  comparing  sections  over  so  wide  a  range  of  ter- 
ritory, it  is  not  to  be  expected  that  they  should  agree  in 


118  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHX  F.   CARLL. 

A 

detail.  Indeed,  it  would  be  contrary  to  every  known  law 
of  sedimentary  deposition  if  they  did.  From  the  very  na- 
ture of  the  mechanical  agents  employed  and  the  materials 
wrought  upon,  local  irregularities  of  structural  constitution 
should  be  looked  for,  among  the  subordinate  members  of  a 
group,  even  where  a  marked  parallelism  might  be  seen  to 
exist  between  the  general  division-planes  hypothetically 
adopted  as  separating  one  characteristic  series  of  rocks  from 
the  next  above  or  below  it.  We  shall  be  well  satisfied,  for 
the  present,  if  we  be  able  to  trace  approximately  these  pri- 
mary divisions  ;  the  subordinate  ones  are  of  secondary  im- 
portance. 

§  293.  LeecJiburg  gas-sand  in  the  PittsTiurg  well. — If  we 
have  correctly  traced  the  first  oil  sand  in  groups  Nos.  1,  2 
and  3  (Plates  V  and  VI)  down  from  the  producing  oil  belt 
to  the  wells  at  Tarentum,  Cherry  run  and  Clarion,  it  seems 
probable  from  the  arrangement  of  sections  in  Group  No.  4 
(Plate  VI)  that  the  sandstone  in  the  Pittsburg  well  at  1590'. 
represents  the  top  of  the  oil  group.  It  is  also  evident  that 
the  Leechburg  gas-sand  belongs  to  the  same  horizon. 

§  294.  The  James1  well  record  as  published  in  report  I.I. 
needs  some  modification.  It  there  appears  as  if  the  first 
435'  from  the  surface  was  all  sandstone,  which  is  not  the 
case.  This  part  of  the  record  seems  to  have  been  rather 
vaguely  kept.  The  facts  given  in  a  note  accompanying  the 
record  are  as  follows  and  the  accompanying  section  is  made 
accordingly. 

"Conductor  25  ft.  to  a  rotten  sandstone." 
"White  mountain  sand  struck  at  278  feet." 
Leaving  253  feet  to  be  represented  by  rotten  sandstone 
and  unknown  strata :  next 

"Fresh  water  cased  off  at  314  ft.  in  a  grey  sand" 
Consequently  the  ' '  white  mountain  sand ' '  must  have  been 
less  than  36'.     We  have  called  it  30'. 

"Struck  a  90  ft.  grey  sand  at  435  ft..  Oil  in  this  rock  at 
445'  and  518'— it  rose  in  the  hole  from  60'  to  80'  in  a  few 
minutes." 

We  have  then  from  308'  to  435'=1 27'  to  represent  the 
grey  sand  and  unknown  measures  below  it ;  and,  in  all  prob- 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  119 

ability,  the  "90'  grey  sand"  was  rather  a  series  of  sand 
shells  than  a  solid  sandstone.  Below  this  the  record  is  very 
precise,  no  point  being  left  open  for  question. 

§  295.  One  other  matter  should  be  mentioned  in  connec- 
tion with  this  well.  From  2063'  to  2112'  the  record  gives 
"49  ft.  of  olive  shale  with  brown  shells."  Mr.  James'  de- 
scription of  this  is  as  follows — "49  ft.  of  olive  shale  and 
sand  shells — a  light-brown  colored  sand  alternating  with  the 
shale,  each  sand  showing  oil  and  gas.  The  sand  is  greasy  to 
the  touch  and  smells  of  oil.  These  streaks  of  sand  run 
one  to  eight  feet  thick.  A  description  which  would  apply 
equally  well  to  some  of  the  Chemung  oil-rocks  of  McKean 
county  to  which  series  this  deposit  undoubtedly  belongs. 

§  296.  It  only  remains,  now,  to  note  the  contrast  between 
the  rocks  of  the  oil  group  as  shown  along  the  oil  producing 
belt,  and  those  at  the  same  horizon  as  seen  in  the  last  group 
of  sections  ;  and  to  offer  if  possible  some  plausible  hypoth- 
esis to  account  for  it.  This  is  done  in  the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Contrast  between  tJie  producing  and  non-producing  areas 
of  the  oil-sand  group. 

§  297.  Previous  to  our  present  survey,  the  Yenango  oil- 
sands  were  universally  regarded  as  of  CTiemung  age. 

In  the  summer  of  1875  evidences  began  to  accumulate 
pointing  strongly  toward  the  probability  that  they  were  of 
more  recent  date  ;  but  the  idea  seemed  then  so  heterodox, 
and  the  facts  to  support  it  were  at  first  so  meagre  and  ques- 
tionable, that  no  definite  conclusion  on  the  subject  could 
be  immediately  arrived  at. 

Even  now,  their  relative  place  in  the  Palaeozoic  column 
of  eastern  Pennsylvania  cannot  be  precisely  and  positively 
indicated.  We  can  only  say  there  are  reasonable  grounds 
for  inferring  that  they  do  not  belong  to  the  CTiemung  forma- 
ti6n,  as  represented  in  New  York  State  and  in  eastern  Penn- 
sylvania. 


120  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

§  298.  That  the  close  of  the  CTiemung period  was  accom- 
panied by  movements  of  the  earth-crust  of  at  least  sufficient 
importance  to  interrupt  the  uniform  conditions  of  deposi- 
tion previously  prevailing  over  a  large  portion  of  western 
Pennsylvania,  cannot  be  questioned  ;  for,  bands  of  coarse 
conglomeritic  sandstone,  indicative  of  such  movements, 
make  their  appearance  near  the  top  of  the  formation,  in 
marked  contrast  to  the  homogeneous  deposits  of  shale  and 
slate  below  them. 

§  299.  We  may  infer  that  these  coarse  sediments  which 
lie  as  a  group  of  transition  strata  between  the  deposits  of 
the  Chemung  age  and  the  deposits  of  the  next  following 
CatsJcill  age,  represent  a  considerable  interval  of  time. 

During  this  interval-age  changes  in  the  general  relations 
of  land  to  sea  must  have  been  going  on.  These  changes 
would  affect  the  character  of  the  deposits  in  some  districts 
and  not  in  others  ;  and  thus  the  nonconformity  was  estab- 
lished between  the  present  vertical  section  of  western  Penn- 
sylvania with  that  of  eastern  Pennsylvania  and  New  York. 

I  can  imagine  that  a  vertical  movement  of  sea  bottom  to 
the  extent  of  say  one  hundred  feet  would  have  an  effect 
upon  the  subsequent  deposits,  varying  according  to  the 
depth  of  water ;  scarcely  perceptible  where  the  sea  was 
deep,  and  where  the  same  class  of  deposits  would  go  on  if 
the  same  kind  of  material  were  furnished ;  but  where  the 
water  was  shallow,  sufficient  to  materially  alter  the  nature 
of  the  deposits,  and  even  to  change  the  bottom  into  dry 
land,  or  vice  versa. 

Thus,  the  deposits  in  one  area  of  the  State  may  be  very 
uniform  ;  while  in  another  area,  deposits  of  that  same  age, 
.and  laid  down  in  the  same  sea  basin,  may  be  quite  hetero- 
geneous. 

§  300.  Furthermore,  while  such  movements  left  the  gen- 
eral system  of  currents  carrying  along  the  materials  for 
deposit  practically  unchanged  in  force  and  direction,  it 
might  and  probably  would  happen  that  the  character  of 
the  materials  carried  would  suffer  some  and  perhaps  a 
notable  change.  The  shore  lines  being  shifted  by  the  shifted 
.sea  level,  new  sources  of  material  would  be  exposed  and 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  121 

utilized ;  a  different  range  or  country  of  rocks  in  place 
would  be  eroded ;  consequently  a  different  kind  of  sedi- 
ments would  be  laid  down. 

Where  the  water  was  deep,  there  the  red  sands  of  the 
Catskill  would  immediately  cover  the  brown  and  olive  muds 
of  the  Chemung,  and  the  change  would  be  sudden  and  dis- 
tinctly marked.  But  in  the  shallower  parts  of  the  sea- 
basin  an  irregular  series  of  the  two  would  be  in  process  of 
deposition  at  the  time ;  alternations  of  red  Catskill  and 
olive-brown  Chemung  strata  would  be  made ;  and  thus  a 
transition  series  would  take  the  place  of  a  sharply  defined 
plane  of  distinction. 

§  301.  A  corresponding  change  in  the  animal  life  of  the 
period  would  take  place  ;  and  while  in  one  area  the  change 
from  Chemung  fossils  to  Catskill  fossils  would  be  at  once 
and  complete,  in  another  area  forms  characteristic  of  the 
Chemung  age  would  be  mixed  with  or  alternate  with  char- 
acteristic forms  of  the  Catskill  age  next  succeeding  it. 

§  302.  A  comparison  of  the  structure  and  depth  of  sedi- 
ment belonging  to  the  Catskill,  the  Pocono,  and  the  Mauch 
Chunk  periods  in  eastern  Pennsylvania  with  those  of  the 
same  ages  in  western  Pennsylvania  leaves  little  room  to 
doubt  that  the  former  represent  deposits  in  a  much  broader 
and  deeper  sea  than  the  latter — a  sea  perhaps  whose  bottom 
was  undergoing  a  steady  depression  in  the  east  while  it  was 
alternating  between  depression  and  elevation,  and  gradually 
shallowing,  in  the  west. 

An  elevation  of  ocean  bottom  near  the  close  of  the  Che- 
mung period  seems  to  me  to  have  thrown  off  the  waters 
from  a  large  portion  of  its  former  bed  in  the  west,  leaving 
submerged  in  that  direction  only  a  narrow  arm  of  the  sea. 
representing  perhaps  some  old  sub-marine  valley.  This 
comparatively  contracted  and  shallow  basin  must  necessa- 
rily, from  the  very  nature  of  the  case,  have  been  the  reposi- 
tory of  immense  deposits  of  re-worked  CJiemung  sediments, 
rapidly  brought  into  it  from  the  newly  emerged  mud-land, 
to  be  interbedded  with  the  CatsTcill  reds  which  were  inter- 
mittently swept  in  from  the  east  to  greater  or  less  distances 
as  circumstances  directed. 


122  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

We  might  then  expect  to  find  in  this  basin  precisely  what 
the  drill  discloses — alternations  of  Catskill  red  and  Che- 
mung  grey  argillaceous  shales,  occupying  the  deepest  part 
of  it ;  and  more  sandy  deposits  lying  around  its  edges. 

§  303.  It  is  not  surprising  then  to  find  that  the  representa- 
tion of  the  Oil- sand  group  (in  Plate  V II)  by  records  of  wells 
in  the  barren  country,  differs  materially  from  that  of  Plates 
IV,  Y  and  VI  constructed  from  well  records  along  the  oil 
producing  belt. 

The  rocks  in  Plate  VII -evidently  lie  in  a  deeper  part  of 
the  basin.  Red  shales  appear  more  abundantly  and  at 
lower  levels.  The  sands  are  finer  ;  of  more  uniform  texture  ; 
and  more  micaceous.  They  look  like  sediments  deposited 
over  areas  where  the  transporting  currents,  having  just  mo- 
tion enough  to  hold  this  kind  of  matter  in  suspension,  met 
dead-water  and  dropped  the  burden.  In  such  situations 
deposits  take  place  rapidly,  as  we  know  from  forming  sand 
bars  at  the  present  time ;  and  in  this  fact  we  have  a  suffi- 
cient explanation  of  the  additional  thickness  of  the  meas- 
ures which  I  consider  to  be  of  the  same  age  as  that  of  the 
Oil -sand  group. 

§  304.  But  although  the  Oil-sand  group  appears  to  be 
thicker  in  some  of  the  sections  along  this  line  (Plate  VII) 
than  along  the  oil-producing  belt,  it  is  nevertheless  unpro- 
ductive of  oil  as  far  as  yet  developed.  Whether  this  may 
be  owing  to  a  lack  of  the  material  required  for  the  forma- 
tion of  oil,  to  a  poorer  quality  of  sand  rock,  to  the  universal 
intermixture  of  a  large  amount  of  argillaceous  matter 
throughout  the  whole  mass,  to  the  quality  and  conditions 
of  the  measures  below,  or  of  the  cap  rock  above  the  sands, 
to  the  depth  at  which  the  oil  sand  lies  below  surface  and 
sea  level,  or  to  one  or  all  of  these  conditions  combined  with 
unknown  causes — who  can  say  ?  The  facts  have  been  pre- 
sented, let  each  investigator  decide  for  himself.* 

*The  relationship  of  the  Devonian  rocks  of  Western  Pennsylvania  to  those 
of  the  Middle  and  Eastern  districts  and  to  the  mass  of  the  Catskills  may  pos- 
sibly be  illustrated  by  Prof.  Geikie's  correlation  of  the  Lower  Old  Red  Sand- 
stone south  of  the  Ord,  with  the  upper  portion  of  the  great  Caithness  flag- 
stone series,  in  the  last  paragraph  of  his  memoir  "On  the  Old  Red  Sandstone 
of  Western  Europe,"  published  as  No.  XVI  of  the  Transactions  of  the  Royal 
Society  of  Edinburgh,  Vol.  XXVIII,  page  345  to  448,  and  read  April  1,  1878. 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  123 

Resume. 

§  305.  It  may  not  be  amiss  now  to  glance  hastily  over  the 
general  structural  features  of  the  whole  district  as  sum- 
marized from  the  facts  advanced  in  other  parts  of  this  re- 
port. If  it  be  found  that  the  superincumbent  rocks  ex- 
hibit similar  peculiarities  of  structure  to  those  claimed 
above  for  the  Oil-sand  group, — if  they  all  seem  to  indicate 
by  the  quality  of  their  sediments  and  the  manner  of  their 
strewing  that  there  was  open  water  to  the  southeast  and  dry 
land  to  the  northwest, — the  probabilities  of  the  correctness 
of  our  conclusions  in  relation  to  the  Oil-sand  group  will  be 
greatly  augmented. 

§  306.  The  Panama  Conglomerate. — We  may  commence 
with  the  Panama  rock,  the  lowest  conglomerate,  geologi- 
cally, in  the  measures  we  are  speaking  of.  Its  best  expos- 
ure is  in  Chautauqua  county,  New  York,  where  it  attains 
a  thickness  of  70  feet.  Going  southeast  it  sinks  gradually, 

He  explains  his  views  thus:  The  southern  margin  of  Lake  Orcadie  (the  De- 
vonian sea)  did  not  extend  beyond  the  Ord,  during  the  greater  part  of  its  his- 
tory. All  south  of  that  granitic  ridge  was  land.  Scotland  extended  then 
much  further  northward  than  now.  The  depression  went  on  to  the  north. 
Late  in  the  flagstone  age  the  depression  began  to  allow  the  land  south  of  the 
Ord  to  be  overflowed.  The  Devonian  waters  slowly  crept  southward,  filling 
up  the  hollows  leading  up  into  the  Grampians  and  penetrating  to  the  heart 
of  the  mountain  country.  Gravel  banks  were  formed  along  the  new  shores 
at  successive  levels,  especially  in  such  recesses  as  that  of  Cawdor.  Northern 
fish  found  their  way  southward,  but  when  they  died  were  buried  in  a  calcare- 
ous silt,  and  around  their  bones  nodules  were  formed.  These  silts  represented 
intervals  of  changed  conditions,  not  frequently  recurring.  As  a  rule  sand 
and  gravel  were  deposited  on  the  lake  bottom,  and  in  these  scarcely  any  fish 
are  found. 

An  analogous  state  of  things  in  Pennsylvania  might  be  thus  expressed: 
The  depression  went  on  through  the  Chemung  age  unequally,  the  greatest 
sinking  being  through  Middle  Pennsylvania.  By  the  time  the  first  Catskill 
deposits  were  being  deposited  in  still  deep  water  there,  the  Chemung  basin 
had  shoaled  up  westward  toward  Ohio  and  southward  in  Virginia,  and  low 
mud  flats  appeared,  by  an  arrest  of  sinking,  or  by  a  slow  elevation  further 
west.  This  action  limited  the  red  Catskill  deposits  (IX)  to  the  eastern  area. 
Afterwards  the  general  depression  permitted  the  western  area  also  to  receive 
soft  deposits,  corresponding  therefore  then  to  the  Gray  Pocono  deposits  (X) 
in  the  eastern  area.  But  the  western  deposits  were  in  shallow  water,  and  at 
intervals  were  charged  with  iron,  and  so  constitute  now  the  red  bands  of  X, 
the  reds  of  the  Oil  region,  &c.  This  was  followed  by  the  great  deposit  of 
Mauch  Chunk  red  shales  of  XI  in  the  east,  represented  by  gray  shales  in  the 
west  and  limestones  and  coal  beds  in  the  south. — J.  P.  L. 


124  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN"  F.   CAttLL. 

and  finally  disappears  beneath  water  level  in  the  southern 
part  of  Erie  county,  Penna.  Where  last  seen  it  has  lost 
much  of  its  conglomeritic  character  and  become  greatly  re- 
duced in  thickness.  If  traced  transversely  to  this  line,  that 
is  towards  the  south  and  southeast,  it  soon  passes  into 
sandy  shale,  loses  its  individuality,  and  becomes  unrecog- 
nizable as  a  sandstone. 

§  307.  The  Salamanca  Conglomerate  or  Ellicottville  rock, 
another  conglomerate  very  similar  in  aspect  to  the  Panama, 
is  best  exposed  in  Cattaraugus  county,  New  York.  Its 
geological  horizon  is  apparently  from  200'  to  300'  higher 
than  the  Panama  rock,  which  in  its  trend,  slope  and  physi- 
cal characteristics  it  closely  imitates. 

These  two  conglomerates  by  their  positions  and  fossils 
and  by  the  fossils  of  their  associate  strata,  are  evidently  of 
Chemung  age  ;  and,  from  their  ascertained  dips  toward  the 
southeast,  and  all  the  traces  that  can  be  obtained  of  them 
in  well  borings  on  the  interval  between  their  outcrops  and 
the  productive  oil  belt,  the  inference  is  that  they  are  narrow 
ranges  of  pebbly  sandstones  trending  in  a  northeast  south- 
west direction  and  that  they  soon  merge  into  shale  when 
traced  toward  the  south  or  southeast. 

§  308.  Tlie  Oil-sand  group. — Ascending  the  geological 
scale,  the  Venango  oil  sands  come  next  in  order.  Whether 
these  rocks  be  Upper  Chemung,  Catskill  or  Lower  Pocono 
need  not  be  discussed  here,  as  it  is  the  geographical  range 
of  the  formations  and  the  manner  in  which  the  sedi- 
ments have  been  laid  down,  and  not  the  age  of  the  strata, 
that  we  are  now  considering.  Wherever  this  group  is  found 
in  its  integrity  it  is  always  deeply  buried  from  sight.  Like 
the  conglomerates  mentioned  above,  it  also  trends  in  a 
northeast  southwest  direction,  and  the  several  sandy  mem- 
bers become  more  argillaceous  when  traced  toward  the 
southeast.  The  range  of  its  maximum  development  lies 
some  25  miles  southeast  of  the  range  of  the  Panama  rock. 

§  309.  The  red  belt. — Above  the  Oil  group  comes  in  the 
persistent  band  of  red  shale  before  referred  to  ;  sometimes 
125'  or  more  in  thickness,  and  spreading  out  over  many 
square  miles  of  the  Yenango  Oil  belt ;  but  nowhere  in  Penn- 


TWO  OIL  BELTS.  III.  125 

sylvania  showing  an  outcrop  to  the  north  or  northwest  al- 
though its  horizon  is  in  many  places  above  water  level. 

§  310.  The  Pithole  grit,  lying  still  higher,  is  a  massive 
sandstone,  well  denned  along  the  Yenango  Oil  belt  as 
we  have  seen  above,  and  traceable  in  frequent  outcrops 
at  the  north  and  northwest  of  it.  but  scarcely  recognizable 
in  the  oil  wells  of  Clarion  county  and  Eastern  Butler. 

§  311.  The  Garland  (Sharon,  Olean)  conglomerate. — 
Then  the  remnant  outliers  of  the  Second  Mountain  sand 
(the  conglomerate  of  Olean,  Garland,  &c.)  may  be  seen 
sweeping  around  to  the  southeast  of  the  before  mentioned 
conglomerates  of  Salamanca  and  Panama.  This  rock  too 
fines  down  in  composition  and  frequently  thins  out  or  be- 
comes interstratified  with  shale  as  it  spreads  toward  the 
southeast. 

§  312.  The  Sharon  coal  group. — Investigating  still  fur- 
ther, we  find  the  lowest  or  oldest  coal  beds  coming  in  a  short 
distance  to  the  southeast  and  south  of  the  outcropping  con- 
glomerates in  Ohio,  and  in  Crawford,  Yenango,  Warren  and 
McKean  counties  in  Pennsylvania. 

These  coals  are  not  discovered  in  any  of  the  drill  holes 
over  the  central  parts  of  the  basin.  They  lie  in  detached, 
irregular  and  restricted  areas,  as  if  accumulated  in  land- 
locked bays,  and  swamps,  at  the  dawn  of  that  luxuriant 
era  of  vegetation  which  in  a  later  day  spread  the  thicker 
and  more  persistent  Lower  and  Upper  Productive  coal- 
measure  beds  over  the  central  portions  of  the  great  water 
area  filled  by  this  nearly  to  sea  level.  * 

§  313.  The  Berea  grit  in  Ohio  is  said  to  gradually  pass 
from  .the  coarse  and  sometimes  conglomeritic  sandstone, 
seen  in  its  northern  and  western  outcrops,  into  flags  and 
sandy  shale  as  it  is  traced  towards  the  south  and  east.  The 
conglomerate  underlying  the  coal  measures  fines  down  or 
thins  out  in  the  same  directions,  and  the  lower  coal  beds  fol- 

*In  Ohio,  however,  the  preparatory  conditions  for  large  continuous  coal 
beds  were  accomplished  earlier  than  in  Pennsylvania ;  so  that,  what  are  scat- 
tered patches  of  thin  poor  coal  (Sharon  and  Mercer)  in  Pennsylvania,  are  in 
Ohio  regular  and  continuous  large  coal  beds;  and  therefore  the  Lower  Pro- 
ductive coal  sen'es  of  the  Ohio  geologists  does  not  terminate  downwards  at 
bed  A  of  the  Clarion  series  of  the  Pennsylvania  reports.— J.  P.  L. 


126  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

lowing  the  trend  of  the  conglomerate  are  lost  in  passing 
transversely  to  it.  toward  the  great  central  coal  basin. 

There  is  nothing  in  all  these  facts  to  conflict  with  the 
views  advanced  above  in  relation  to  the  deposition  of  the  oil 
sands ;  but  on  the  contrary,  they  appear  to  furnish  con- 
firmative evidence  of  their  probability. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  Venango  oil  group. 

§  314.  The  "  Group  of  the  three  oil  Sands"  was  referred 
to  in  Report  I,  and  a  number  of  sections  of  its  oil  rocks 
were  given,  made  from  well  records  obtained  in  Yenango 
county.  Continuing  in  this  report  the  same  line  of  research, 
I  will  now  give  some  additional  similar  sections,  for  the 
purpose  of  illustrating  the  extension  of  the  group  south- 
south-westward,  into  the  counties  of  Clarion,  Armstrong 
and  Butler,  where  it  is  as  plainly  recognizable  by  its  struc- 
ture, position  and  general  characteristics  as  it  is  in  Venango 
county. 

§  315.  Four  plates  occupying  pages  129, 131,  133  and  135, 
each  plate  containing  seven  sections,  drawn  to  a  common 
scale,  and  representing  (in  diagram)  records  of  wells  located 
in  different  parts  of  the  district,  are  designed  to  exhibit  the 
varying  positions  and  thicknesses  of  the  several  sandy 
members  of  the  group. 

The  well-sections  on  each  plate  are  numbered  from  left 
to  right,  to  correspond  with  the  southwest-northeast  ar- 
rangement of  the  first  three,  and  the  northwest-southeast 
arrangement  of  the  fourth. 

Series — Figs.  40  to  46 — extends  from  Bullion  in  Ve- 
nango county,  to  Tidioute  in  Warren  county.* 

Series — Figs.  47  to  53 — extends  from  Carbon  Centre  in 
Butler  county,  to  Parker  City  in  Armstrong  county,  f 

Series— Figs.   54  to  60— extends  from    Columbia  Hill, 

*  See  note  a,  Chapter  XV. 

1 1  am  compelled  to  leave  Fig.  49  blank,  for  the  reason  that  no  detailed 
record  of  the  oil  group  could  be  secured  at  or  near  Millerstown,  although  spe- 
cial efforts  were  made  to  get  one.  The  depths  to  Ferriferous  limestone  and 
"3d  sand "  were  all  the  measurements  that  could  be  obtained— another  illus- 
tration of  the  indifference  of  the  well  driller  to  anything  but  his  "  key  rock  " 
and  the  oil  sand. 

(127  III.) 


128  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

near  Parker  City,  in  Butler  county,  to  Shippenville  in 
Clarion  county. 

Series — Figs.  61  to  67 — extends  from  Greece  City  in  But- 
ler county,  to  Criswell  City  in  Armstrong  county  ;  along 
the  "Cross  Belt"  or  "Fourth  Sand  Belt"  of  Butler 
county. 

The  integrity  of  the  Venango  Oil-sand  group  must  be 
kept  in  clear  view  if  the  value  of  these  sections  is  to  be  fully 
appreciated. 

It  is  a  group  in  the  strictest  sense  of  the  term.  It  has  a 
well-defined  top  and  a  well-defined  bottom. 

It  is  overlaid  by  several  hundred  feet  of  measures — the 
Crawford  shales — which  have  a  plainly  different  character. 

It  is  underlaid  in  like  manner  by  hundreds  of  feet  of 
measures  —  Chemung — which  (whether  belonging  to  the 
same  epoch  or  not)  have  as  plainly  different  a  character. 


§  316.  Oner  the  Oil-sand  group,  everywhere  along  the 
Oil-belts,  lie  from  400'  to  500'  of.  soft  rocks,  unmistakably 
separating  it  from  the  Mountain- sands  above. 

This  great  soft  formation  outcrops  in  abroad  belt  through 
Warren,  and  covers  a  great  part  of  Crawford  county,*  be- 
neath the  northern  Drift. 

Along  the  Venango  Oil  belt  it  is  split  by  the  Pitliole  grit 
into  two  divisions,  of  nearly  equal  thickness,  f 

Its  upper  division  (above  the  Pithole  grit)  may  be  called 
195'  thick ;  but  there  is  often  a  considerable  difficulty  in 
fixing  its  top,  on  account  of  occasional  or  local  massive 
sandstone  layers,  similar  in  all  respects  to  those  of  the 
Mountain-sand  series  above  it. 

Its  'lower  division  (under  the  Pithole  grit)  is  much  more 
easily  measured,  averaging  185'  in  thickness,  and  so  homo- 
geneous that  the  drill  makes  more  rapid  progress  in  passing 

*  Hence  its  provisional  name  of  Crawford  Shales,  adopted  by  the  State 
Geologist  to  avoid  complications  with  the  Ohio  column,  pending  the  final  set- 
tlement of  the  harmony  between  it  and  the  Pennsylvania  column. 

f  See  plate  IV. 


Plate  XXVII. 


III.  129 


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130  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

down  through  it  than  in  any  other  section  of  the  wells  of 
equal  volume. 

Taking  the  Pithole  grit  at  say  20  feet,  the  whole  Crawford 
Shale  formation  may  be  said  then  to  measure  about  400  feet, 
along  the  Venango  oil-belt. 

§  317.  Where  the  Pithole  grit  does  not  split  it  into  two 
main  divisions,  i.  e.,  in 'parts  of  Butler,  Armstrong,  and 
Clarion  counties  (where  the  horizon  of  the  Pithole  grit  is 
obscure,  and  the  Crawford  Shale  is  not  so  homogenous  a 
formation)  there  are  nevertheless  always  to  be  found  above 
the  Oil-sand  group  from  300'  to  400'  of  soft  measures, 
through  which  the  drills  go  faster  than  anywhere  else ;  a 
visible  evidence  of  which  fact  is  presented  in  the  curious 
diagram  of  the  Relative  rates  of  drilling  in  the  six  Petro- 
lia  wells,  Plate  XVII.* 

§  318.  The  sandy  layers  at  the  top  of  the  Crawford  shale 
are  of  no  moment  in  the  present  discussion.  The  sole  fact 
here  insisted  on  is  this  : — 

1.  That  oxer  the  Oil-sand  group  lies  a  distinct  soft  forma- 
tion, 300'  or  400'  feet  thick,  in  all  parts  of  the  oil  regions 
of  western  Pennsylvania,  which,  for  the  present,  we  call 
the  Crawford  shale,  and  in  the  middle  of  which  appears, 
in  some  parts  of  the  region,  a  massive  sand  deposit  called 
in  this  report  the  Pithole  grit. 

2.  That  the  well  sinker  will  find  an  abrupt  change  of 
character  when  he  gets  through  this  soft  formation  and 
strikes  the  top  of  the  Oil-sand  group.    The  transition  from 
the  soft  Crawford  shales  or  slates  to  the  First  oil-sand  is 
sharply  defined ;  and  the  geologist  is  obliged  to  see  here 
the  close  of  one  period  of  deposits  of  one  kind,  and  the 
beginning  of  another  period  of  deposits  of  a  very  different 
kind. 

§  319.  The  name  adopted,  therefore, —  Venango  Oil-sand 
group — is  not  an  arbitrary  designation,  suggested  merely 
by  the  fact  that  petroleum  was  first  discovered  in  them  in 
Venango  county, — nor  by  the  fact  that  our  oil  surveys  com- 
menced with  them  in  Venango  county, — but  a  designation 

•f  See  also  photographs  of  the  cabinet  arrangement  of  the  specimen,  drill- 
ings from  these  \vclls. 


Plate  XXVIII. 


HI.  181 


132  III.        .REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

based  npon  a  sound  geological  generalization  of  all  the  facts 
obtained  thus  far  in  our  surveys  of  the  whole  oil  field  be- 
tween Pittsburg  and  Lake  Erie,  confirming  the  integrity  of 
the  group'  as  a  group,  its  type  being  in  Venango  county. 

The  Warren  oil  sands  are  quite  a  different  older  and  lower 
group  ;  and  the  Bradford  oil  sands  also. 


§  320.  Under  the  Oil-sand  group,  again  lies  a  perfectly 
well  marked  different  formation. 

The  driller  having  gone  through  the  Venango  Oil-sands 
and  their  separating  shales,  and  reached  the  base  of  the 
group,  suddenly,  by  as  abrupt  a  transition  as  that  which 
he  encountered  at  its  top,  enters  a  different  set  of  rocks. 
Wherever  the  group  is  normally  developed,  the  drill  passes 
at  once  from  sandstone  into  shale,  and  continues  from  that 
point  in  the  well,  to  go  steadily  down  through  shales  for 
hundreds  of  feet,  without  encountering  any  sandstone  lay- 
ers like  those  above. 

A  large  majority  of  oil  wells  were  never  drilled  below  the 
Third  sand,  or  base  of  the  group  ;  for  experience  had  con- 
vinced operators  that  it  was  useless  to  expect  another  sand 
layer  below  that  horizon,  along  the  whole  line  of  the  Ve- 
nango and  Butler  belts. 

Several  hundred  wells,  however,  were  put  down  to  depths 
of  100'  to  500'  beneath  the  lowest  Venango  Oil-sand.  Their 
numbers  and  the  extent  of  ground  over  which  they  lie 
scattered,  afford  conclusive  evidence  that  the  measures 
beneath  the  Oil-sand  group  have  everywhere  the  same  clay 
character.  The  universal  testimony  of  their  records  is — 
soft  drilling  and  no  coarse  massive  sandrocJc  after  leaving 
the  Productive  oil  measures. 

Occasionally,  indeed,  a  "sand"  has  been  reported ;  and 
some  fine-grain  sandstone  layers  were  to  be  expected,  for 
they  are  not  unknown  in  the  Chemung  series  ;  but  it  is  now 
conceded  that  such  layers  never  resembled  the  Oil-sands, 
and  that  they  occurred  so  rarely,  and  the  reports  of  them 
are  so  vague  and  questionable,  that  we  are  warranted  in 
treating  them  as  mere  local  variations  of  some  of  the  beds 
of  the  Chemung  shales. 


Plate  XXIX. 


111.  133 


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134  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

The  whole  experience  of  deep  drilling  proves  that  nnder 
the  Oil-sands  lies  a  mass  of  rather  soft  shale,  sometimes 
pure  argillaceous  shale  (red  or  blue),  sometimes  "shelly," 
but  always  a  quiet  deep  water  deposit, — totally  unlike  the 
oil-sands,  with  their  shore-deposit  aspect. 


§  321.  The  Venango  Oil-sand  Group,  itself,  is  seen  in  the 
sections  to  be  a  mass  of  sandstone  deposits,  from  300'  to 
380'  thick,  with  layers  of  pebbles,  and  many  local  partings 
of  shale  and  slate. 

As  a  whole,  it  is  a  well-defined  group  of  sandstones  lying 
between  the  two  shale  formations  above  and  below  it  de- 
scribed above  ;  so  sharply  separated  from  them,  so  persist- 
ent, so  characteristic,  and  so  uniform  in  structure  and  thick- 
ness, that  it  deserves  the  special  name  which  it  receives. 

§  322.  Its  thickness,  as  measured  in  different  parts  of  the 
district  is  seen  in  the  sections,  thus  : 

Fig.     Well.  Feet. 

At  Tidioute,        . 300 

«'  Pleasantville, 322 

"  Rouseville, 318 

"  Reno, 301 

Fosters,  .       306 

Scrubgrass, 310 

Bullion,      331 

Shippenville, (278',  3d  SS.+30'±to  4th=)  308± 

Edenburg, 339-[- 

Pickwick, (293',  3d  SS.-f  30'±=)  323± 

Keating, 308-}- 

Ritts,  between  St.  Petersburg  and  Emlenton, 304 

Foxburg,       325 

Reddiokfarm  ("Columbia  Hill  "), 332 

Parker's  Landing,      325 

Sheakley  Station, (255'+81'=)  336 

Petrolia, (25S'+80'±  Dougherty  No.  2=)  338± 

Karns, 325-f- 

Millerstown, ? 

St.  Joe,       (265'-f  75'=340 ;  or  265'-f  75'-f  30'=)  370± 

Carbon  Centre, (351' ;  or  351'+30'=)  381-}- 

Greece, 333^ 

Modoc, 372-f. 

Fairview,  Suttoii  No.  4, (295'-f-86'±=)  381± 

Fairview,  Evans  No.  21, 334 

Frederick,     (260'+75'±=)  333± 

Criswell, 3SO-}- 

Crisvvell, 34^ 


Plate  XXX. 


III.  135 


136  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

§  323.  These  figures  may  be  varied  somewhat  by  taking 
other  well  records  ;  but  it  will  be  found,  as  a  general  rule, 
that  a  thickness  of  350  feet,  as  claimed  in  Report  I,  will  in 
nearly  every  case  embrace  all  the  sands  belonging  to  the 
Yenango  group — even  the  Fourth,  Fifth  and  Sixth  sands,  as 
the  lower  members  of  the  group,  in  some  localities  have 
been  called. 

§  324.  That  the  confessedly  variable  thickness  of  its  indi- 
vidual members  should  vary  the  dimensions  of  the  group 
as  such,  might  be  expected.  It  is  wonderful  therefore  how 
the  group  maintains  its  total  thickness  with  such  uniformity 
for  a  distance  of  62  miles  in  a  straight  line,  from  Tidioute  in 
Warren  county  to  Herman  station  in  Butler  county.  The 
top  sand  is  sometimes  10'  thick  and  sometimes  85' ;  the  bot- 
tom sand  may  be  5'  thick  orit  may  be  120' ;  and  so,  either 
one  of  these  members  may  individually  vary  in  thickness 
about  as  much  as  the  whole  group  is  found  to  vary. 

§  325.  Shape  of  the  Oil-sand  deposits. — It  has  sometimes 
been  asserted  that  the  top  of  a  sandrock  is  always  uniform, 
and  that  any  irregularity  of  thickness  necessarily  implies 
an  uneven  base.  But  facts  do  not  seem  to  warrant  the  ac- 
ceptance of  any  such  law  of  structure  as  universally  preva- 
lent. The  commencement  of  sandy  deposits  upon  soft  ones 
would  no  doubt,  under  certain  circumstances,  be  attended 
by  some  unevenness  of  bottom.  Strong  currents  bearing 
course  materials  might  excavate  first  to  a  certain  extent,  and 
then  deposit ;  while  sluggish  waters  would  lay  down  finer 
sand  on  the  original  floor  undisturbed.  And  this  has  some- 
times happened  ;  for  we  not  infrequently  discover  by  actual 
levels  and  measurements,  that  where  a  thin  fine  sandrock 
swells  into  a  thick  pebbly  one,  there  is  a  more  uniform  level 
at  the  top  of  the  stratum  than  at  the  bottom.  Still,  where 
the  conditions  of  deposition  were  so  variable  and  uncertain 
as  these  must  have  been,  it  would  be  unsafe'  to  formulate 
any  fixed  rules  for  universal  guidance  in  these  particulars. 

§  326.  The  importance  of  mewing  the  oil-rocks  as  a  group 
by  itself,  and  of  studying  them  individually,  always  with  a 
view  to  their  natural  association  as  members  of  such  a  group, 
cannot  be  too  earnestly  impressed  upon  oil  producers.  It 


VENANGO  OIL  GKOUP.  III.  137 

is  the  true  key  to  a  correct  understanding  of  the  structure 
of  the  oil  regions, — the  only  one  indeed  which  unlocks  the 
complications  and  involutions  of  the  drillers  oil  sand  nomen- 
clature, some  specimens  of  which  are  given  in  Chap.  XIX. 

If  for  example  the  pioneer  operators  in  Butler  county 
had  only  always  kept  in  mind  the  fact — which  they  very 
well  knew — tliat  above  the  first  oil  sand  they  had  always 
found  a  mass  of  soft  rock  about  J^OOfeet  thick,  and  if  they 
had  always  noted  the  relative  positions  of  all  the  sandy 
members  of  the  oil-sand  group,  instead  of  confining  their 
scrutiny  to  that  one  of  them  from  which  the  oil  came,  they 
would  have  soon  remarked  that  what  the  driller  called 
Second  sand  in  Butler  county  was  really  nothing  else  but 
the  First  sand  of  Venango  county. 

§  327.  If,  at  Petrolia,  the  oil  drillers  had  observed  care- 
fully when  and  where  they  struck  the  top  of  the  Oil-sand 
group,  they  would  have  noticed  in  going  deeper  that  their 
so  called  Third  sand  lay  only  250  feet  beneath  it,  and  there- 
fore could  not  be  the  Oil  creek  Third  sand;  for  they  would 
have  inferred  that  the  group  had  been  only  two  thirds 
pierced,  and  that  there  must  be  other  sands  still  below  them. 

The  result  in  some  cases  was  disastrous  enough.  There 
were  men  in  the  Petrolia  district  who,  relying  on  their  own 
judgment,  and  ability  to  indentify  the  Third  sand  any- 
where, and  knowing  by  experience  that  no  oil  was  to  be 
expected  under  the  Third  sand  of  Oil  creek, — stopped  their 
borings  at  the  first  rock  that  yielded  oil,  calling  it  the  Third 
sand,  and  then,  getting  little  or  no  oil  from  it,  sold  out  at 
a  loss,  without  an  effort  to  go  deeper.  The  name  of  Third 
sand  stopped  them.  It  is  easy  to  imagine  their  surprise 
and  chagrin  when  new  owners  suspecting  the  right  applica- 
tion of  the  name,  or  for  other  reasons,  carried  down  their 
holes  to  the  bottom  rock  of  the  group  and  got  hundreds  of 
barrels  of  oil  per  day.  Territory  which  the  first  owners  had 
condemned  and  sacrificed  through  the  mistake  of  a  name, 
came  to  rank  in  second  hands  among  the  most  valuable  in 
the  country. 

§  328.  I  could  cite  several  cases  where  the  knowledge  of  the 
simple  fact,  that  all  the  oil-sands  lie  in  one  group  and  that 


138  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

this  group  lias  a  well  defined  soft  top  and  a  well  defined 
soft  bottom,  would  have  saved  the  operator  more  money 
than  the  whole  expense  of  the  geological  survey  of  the  oil 
region. 

But  this  fact — simple  as  it  is — became  known,  and  could 
only  become  known,  by  a  strictly  geological  method  of 
observation.  Yet  the  average  oil  producers  sees  no  util- 
ity in  a  geological  investigation  ;  shifts  his  tools  from  place 
to  place ;  puts  down  his  wells  ;  and  decides  for  himself,  by 
surface  levelings  in  reference  to  some  assumed  dip  of  the 
oil- rock,  where  his  Third  sand  will  be,  stamping  a  charac- 
ter, productive  or  unproductive,  on  the  territory,  which  the 
geologist  can  easily  show  to  be  unmerited. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

The  dip  of  the  Venango  oil  sand  group. 
Plate  VIII,  (with  a  map,  Plate  IX.) 

§  329.  The  unity  of  the  group  having  been  exhibited,  and 
its  identity  proved  both  in  the  Venango  and  the  Butler-Clar- 
ion belts,  it  remains  to  show  how  it  lies  in  reference  to  sea 
l^vel ;  how  it  dips  southwestward, 

Plate  VIII,  and  the  tables  below,  tell  the  whole  story 
without  more  words. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  exhibition  in  the.  Clarion 
county  part  is  not  fuller;  but  although  the  oil  develop- 
ments have  there  spread  out  much  wider  than  is  shown  on 
Plate  VIII,  or  on  the  large  map  Plate  IX,  I  have  limited 
myself  to  facts  in  hand  ;  omitting  several  interesting  calcu- 
lations for  which  my  data  were  still  insufficient.  The  map 
however  is  complete  enough  for  the  purpose  intended ;  and 
others  may  place  upon  their  copies  of  it  additional  facts  as 
they  get  them,  and  so  extend  the  calculations. 

alt  was  intimated  in  Report  I  (page  30)  that  there  were  reasonable  grounds 
for  supposing  that  the  Stray  and  3d  sand  had  coalesced  and  united  into  one 
in  the  Tidioute  and  Triumph  district.  Additional  facts  since  obtained  leave 
little  doubt  that  such  is  the  case.  Accordingly,  in  the  arrangement  of  the  sec- 
tions on  Plate  p.  129,  the  top  of  the  Tidioute  and  Colorado  sands  have  been 
placed  to  correspond  with  the  top  of  the  Stray  in  other  localities.  This  view 
of  the  order  of  stratification  would  require  a  reduction  of  the  elevations  of 
the  Tidioute  and  Colorado  sands  of  about  45',  in  order  that  they  may  agree 
with  the  top  of  the  Oil  Creek  3d  sand,  (which  lies  about  45'  below  the  top  of 
the  Stray, )  this  being  the  horizon  used  in  all  the  other  elevations  given  on 
the  northern  belt,  from  Tidioute  to  Clintonville. 

The  Tidioute  Third  sand  horizon  will  then  be    ...  1008—45=963' 
The  Colorado  Third  sand  horizon  will  then  be    ...  853—45=808' 

The  dips  in  Table  A3  will  be  changed  as  follows: 

Tidioute  to  Fagundus, from  30.9  per  mile  to  20.0 

Tidioute  to  Church  Run, from  11.9  per  mile  to    9.6 

Church  Run  to  Colorado, from    0      per  mile  to    6.8 

Colorado  to  Pleasantville, from  20.2  per  mile  to  10  0 

Fagundus  to  Colorado,  .   .    .  from    5      per  mile  to  14.0 

(  139  III.  ) 


140  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F-  CARLL. 


§  330.  Table  A1;  giving  the  Elevation  of  the  Top  of  the 
Third  oil  sand  above  sea  level,  at  the  points  along  the  belt, 
in  Warren  and  Venango  counties  (designated  on  Plate 
VII)  from  Tidioute  to  Clintonville  ;  as  follows  : 

Table  A.1  Warren  and  Venango  counties. 
Tidioute  to  Clintonville. 

Height  of  top  of  Third  sand  above  ocean  level.    See  Plate  VII. 

Tidioutef, *1008' 

Fagundus, *878 

Colorado *853 

Church  Run, .' *853 

Titusville  (Watsons  Flats), *793 

Pleasantville, *768 

Shamburg, *723 

Pithole, *683 

Cashup,     *708 

Petroleum  Centre, *653 

Rouseville, *558 

Clapp  Farm, 550 

Siverly  Farm, 528 

Reno,     472 

Milton  Farm,         . 455 

Franklin,  near  A.  V.  RR.  Depot,     421 

Raymilton,  Raymond  estate, 360 

Fosters,     363 

Scrubgrass,      340 

Bulion  run,  Gealy  Farm, 345 

Clintonville,  Cross  Farm, 230 

Emlenton,  near  town, 130± 

Table  Az.     Warren  and  Venango  counties* 

Tidioute  to  Clintonoille. 
Dip  of  top  of  Third  sand,  in  feet,  per  mile. 


> 

A 

a 

II 

l-a 

•2 
c 

Vt 
5 

i 

1 

|1 

1 

1 

From  Tidioute  to 

Church  run,            

13 

S.  840  w. 

1008  to  853 

155 

11.9 

Colorado,      

6? 

S.  720  w. 

1008  to  853 

155 

22.8 

Fagundus,    . 

a 

S.  270  W. 

1008  to  878 

130 

30.9 

*  These  points  were  used  on  a  diagram  in  Report  I,  1874,  but  the  elevations 
as  there  given  are  all  now  raised  13'  to  cause  them  to  conform  to  ocean  level, 
as  explained  in  Report  II,  1877. 

f  See  note  a  previous  page. 


VENANGO  OIL  SAND  GROUP. 


III.  141 


From  Fagundus  to 
Colorado,              

5 
71 

N.710W. 
S.  77°  W. 

878  to  853 
878  to  768 

25 
110 

5.0 
14.7 

8' 

S.  41°  W. 

878  to  708 

170 

21.0 

From  Colorado  to 

6| 

N.  820  W. 

853  to  853 

0- 

0.0 

-U 

S.  390  W. 

853  to  768 

85 

20.2 

From  Church  run  to 
Titusville  (Watson  flats)  .... 
Pleasantville              

3 

S.  50  E. 

S.  420  E. 

853  to  793 
853  to  768 

60 

85 

24.0 
15.5 

From  Titusville  to 

7 

S.  120  w. 

793  to  653 

140 

20.0 

4A 

S.  20°  E. 

793  to  723 

70 

16.3 

Pleasantville,             
From  Pleasantville  to 
Sliamburg,       
Pithole,      
Cashup,         .           
From  Cashup  to 
Pithole,                
From  Shamburg  to 
Petroleum  Centre,    
Rouseville,       
Pithole,      
From  Petroleum  Centre  to 
Rouseville,          
From  Pithole  to 

3& 
3£ 

? 

if 

k 

3& 

7JL 

S.  650  E. 

S.  400  w. 
S.    40  E. 
S.  25°  E. 

S.  680  w. 

S.  470  W. 
S.  30°  W. 
S.  420  E. 

S.  90  W. 
S.  590  W. 

793  to  768 

768  to  723 
768  to  683 
768  to  708 

708  to  683 

723  to  653 
723  to  558 
723  to  683 

653  to  558 
683  to  558 

25 

45 
85 
60 

25 

70 
165 
40 

95 
125 

6.4 

14.1 
16.3 
12.0 

13.6 

17.5 
22.6 
10.8 

25.7 
17.6 

JP 

S.  47°  W. 

683  to  550 

133 

17.3 

J 

S.  38°  W. 

683  to  528 

155 

16.8 

From  Rouseville  to 
Clapp,    
Reno,      .           
From  Clapp  farm  to 
Siverly  farm,      .           

11 

2 

S.  120  E. 
S.  400  W. 

s.  30  w. 

558  to  550 
558  to  472 

550  to  528 

8 
86 

22 

6.0 
16.4 

11.0 

Reno,                .    .       .           .... 
From  Siverly  farm  to 
Reno,                    

4| 
31 

s.  530  w. 

S.  780  w. 

550  to  472 
528  to  472 

78 
56 

17.3 
16.0 

Milton  farm,              

4> 

S.  63°  W. 

528  to  455 

73 

16.8 

Foster's                       

8 

S.  41°  W. 

528  to  363 

165 

20.6 

From  Reno  to 
Milton  farm,    

n 

S.  200  w. 

472  to  455 

17 

11.3 

Franklin                            .   .       .   . 

v 

S.  63°  W. 

472  to  421 

51 

15.7 

From  Milton  farm  to 

4' 

S.  21°  W. 

455  to  363 

92 

19.7 

n 

West. 

455  to  421 

34 

13.6 

From  Franklin  to 
Foster's,            

a 

S.  10°  E. 
S  68°  W. 

421  to  363 
421  to  360 

58 
61 

13.4 

6.6 

From  Foster's  to 
Raymilton,  
Scrubgrass,      
Bullion  run,        
From  Raymilton  to 
Bullion  run,                  
Clintonville,               ..:.... 
From  Scrubgrass  to 
Clintonville,           .           
From  Bullion  run  to 
ClintonvilLe,       

95 
y 

& 

5 
33 

N.  85°  W. 
S.  220  w. 
S.  360  w. 

S.  480  E. 
S.  300  E. 

S.  370  W. 

S.  180  w. 

363  to  360 
363  to  340 
363  to  345 

360  to  345 
360  to  230 

340  to  230 
345  to  230 

3 

23 

18 

15 
130 

110 
115 

0.3 
5.1 
3.0 

1.8 
13.0 

22.0 
34.1 

Scrubgrass,                 

2 

N.  680  E. 

345  to  340 

5 

2.5 

142  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHJST  F.  CARLL. 


Table  B1.     Clarion  county. 
SMppenmlle  to  Foxburg. 

Height  of  top  of  Third  sand  above  ocean  level.    See  Plate  V1I1. 
Foxburg. 

Shippenville,    1  m.  N.  E.  of  town, 370' 

Edenburg,        {,  m.  S.  E.  of  town 325' 

Beaver  City,     ^  m.  S.  W.  of  town, 255' 

Dogtown,          \  m.  west  of  town, 230' 

Turkey  City 220' 

Foxburg, 100' 

Table  B2    Clarion  county. 

SMppenmlle  to  Foxburg. 

Dip  oftJie  Third  sand  in  feet  per  mile. 


Shippenville  to  Edenburg,    .... 
Eden  burg  to  Beaver  City,  

1 

S.  450  W. 

s.  770  w. 

S.  46°  W. 

370-325 
325-255 
255-230 

45 
70 
25 

14' 
40' 
V 

Dogtown  to  Turkey  City,    
Turkey  to  Foxburg,          

1J 
4J 

S.  60°  W. 
S.  440  W. 

230-220 
220-100 

10 
120 

10' 

25' 

Foxburg  to  Parker  (Island],     .   . 
Foxburg  to  Columbia  Hill,    .... 

3 

South, 
S.  480  w. 

100-60 
100-100 

40 
0 

27' 
0' 

Table  C1.    Armstrong  and  Butler  counties. 
Parker's  to  Herman's  Station. 

Height  of  top  of  Oil-Sands  above  ocean  level.    See  Plate  VIII. 


Columbia  Hill   Reddick  farm 

3rd  SS. 
+100 

4th  SS. 

Parker  Island,  at  mouth  of  Clarion 

-j-  60 

4-  10 

Stonehouse,  in  valley,  near  R'y  station,     

±    8 

Frousinger  farm,  1  m.  E.  of  Martinsburg,  

—  20 

Martinsburg,  Say  farm,  S.  E.  of  town,     
Argyle,  near  the  pump  station,  

—  30 

—  70 

Petrolia,  near  the  post-office,   

—100 

Frederick,  Mortimer  farm,       

—108 

Criswell,  vicinity  of  Boss  well,   

—105 

—190 

Brady's  Bend,  at  furnaces,        .   

(_130?)* 

—215 

Fairview,  McCleary  farm,     

-90 

—175 

Modoc,  near  town,                                              

(—120?) 

—200 

Greece,  near  town,                      
KarnsCity,  McClvman's  farm,                 . 
Millerstown,  (4thvSS.  on  eastern  belt?)  
St.  Joe,  J.  Now  farm,                 .           

(—220  ?.) 
—160 
—245 
—260 

—300 
—250 
—320 
(_33n?) 

Carbon  Centre,  R.  Thompson  farm,  

—294 

—376 

Humes,                    
Herman  station,      '  .•• 

(_375?) 
(—418?) 

—457 
—500 

*  The  figures  given  in  brackets  have  been  supplied  for  the  purpose  of  keep- 
ing the  horizons  of  3d  and  4th  sands  separate.  To  preserve  uniformity  and 
avoid  confusion,  the  dips  are  calculated  throughout  for  the  "3d  sand,"  and 
where  its  exact  position  was  not  noted  at  the  points  designated,  because  it 
was  imperfect  and  not  oil-bearing,  we  have  located  it  from  80  to  85  feet  above 
the  "4th  SS."  The  3d  and  4th  sands  appear  to  lie  very  nearly  parallel  in 
this  section,  therefore  the  dips  here  given  may  be  considered  as  representing 
the  slopes  of  both  sands,  one  lying  about  80  feet  below  the  other. 


VENANGO  OIL  SAND  GROUP. 

Table  Cz.     Rate  of  dip  in  feet  per  mile. 


III.  143 


Table  0*. 
Columbia  Hill  to 
Parker  (Island),    

Miles. 

12 

2i 

Bearing. 

N.  850  E. 
S.  35°  E. 

Ocean  level. 

+100'  to  +  60' 
"    "  +  10 

Fall. 

40' 

90  • 

Rate. 

23' 
36' 

Stonehouse,  
Parker  (Island)  to 
Farrentown,      
Farrentown  to 
Stonehouse,      

2J 

2^ 
2 

S.  11°  W. 
S.  13°  W. 
S.  66°  W.. 

"    «  —    8 
+  60  to  +  10 
+  10  to  —    8 

108 
50 
18 

39' 
21' 

9' 

Fronsinger  Farm,  

2 

S.  250  W. 

r    »    --20 

30 

15' 

Stonehouse  to 
Fronsinger  Farm,  
Martinsburg,        

a 

S.  350  E. 
S.  200  W. 

—    8  to  —  20 
"    "  —  30 

12 

22 

8' 
20' 

Fronsinger  Farm  to 
Martinsburg,    

11 

N.830  W. 

—  20  to  —  30 

10 

8' 

Argyle,       

2 

S.  240  w. 

"    "  —  70 

50 

25' 

Frederick,            

2? 

S.    10  W. 

"    "  —108 

88 

32' 

Criswell,            

8l 

S.  190  E. 

«    «  —105 

85 

24' 

Bradv:s  Bend,         

?! 

S.  43°  E. 

"    "  —130 

110 

20' 

Martinsburg  to 
Modoc,                   

61 

S.  40°  W. 

_  30  to  —120 

90 

14' 

Fairview,                      

r 

S.  120  w. 

«    "  —  90 

60 

20' 

Argyle,                      .       .    . 

2 

S.  120  E. 

"    "  —  70 

40 

20' 

Argyle  to 
Fairview,   
Petrolia  . 

> 

s.  470  w. 

S.  150  \v. 

_  70  to  —  90 
»    "  —100 

20 
30 

13' 
30' 

Frederick,  
Petrolia  to 
Frederick,     
Karns,         

1J 
1 

13 

S.  400  E. 

S.  880  E. 
S.  210  w. 

«    «  —108 

—100  to—  108 
"    "  —160 

38 

8 
60 

30' 

8' 
34 

Fairview  to 

1 

N.  80°  E. 

_  90  to  —100 

10 

10' 

11 

S.  120  E. 

«    "  _160 

70 

47' 

4J 

S.  60°  W. 

«    »  —120 

30 

7' 

Frederick  to 
Karns,     

2i 

S.  420  w. 

—108  to—  160 

52 

23' 

Karns  to 
Millerstown,         
Milierstown  to 
St.  Joe,    
St.  Joe  to 
Carbon  Centre,       
Carbon  Centre  to 
Humes.  . 
Herman  Station,     
Humes  to 
Herman  Station,     
Modoc  to 
Karns, 

3i 
8| 

2 

2 
3? 

2J 
4 

S.  150  W. 
S.  35°  W. 
S.  lio  W. 

S.  250  E. 

H.  240  W. 

s.  550  w. 

N.  820  E. 

—160  to—  245 
—245  to—  260 
—260  to—  294 

—294  to—  375 
"    "  —418 

_375  to—  418 
—120  to—  160 

85 
15 
34 

81 
124 

43 

40 

26' 

4' 
17' 

40' 
33' 

15 

10' 

Millerstown,     
Greece, 

1 

S.  510  E. 
S.  51°  W. 

"    "  —245 
"    "  —220 

125 
100 

31' 
50' 

Greece  to 
Millerstown,     ...       .... 
St.  Joe, 

42 
4| 

S.  730  E. 
S.  34°  E. 

—220  to—  245 
"    "      260 

25 

40 

5' 

8-1' 

Herman  Station,     

91 

S.    50  E. 

»    «  _4i8 

198 

|     fll' 

Criswell  to 
Frederick,     

n 

N.  63°  W. 

—105  to  —108 

3 

2' 

Karns,         

?S 

S.  730  W. 

«    »  _160 

55 

18' 

Millerstown,     

51 

S.  43°  W. 

"    "  —245 

140 

25' 

Brady's  Bend,  ........ 
Hrady's  Bend  to 
Millerstown,  *.   .   ....  ,   ;   ,    . 

21 

7 

S.  760  E. 
S..620  W. 

"    "  —130 
—130  to-—  245 

25 
115 

10' 
16' 

144  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHX  F.  CARLL. 


Table  I)1,  Along  the  axis  of  development. 
Northern  ( Venango)  belt. 


Tide. 
1008 
853 
768 
723 
558 
472 
455 
363 
345 

Tidioute 
Colorado 
Pleasantville 
Sham  burg 
Rouseville 
Reno 
Milton  Farm 
Fosters 
Bullion  Run 

Tidioute 
Tidioute 

Ti 
to 

to 
to 
to 
to 
to 
to 
to 
to 

to 
to 

p  of  Third  Sand  at 
Colorado,      

Fall. 
155 
85 
45 
165 
86 
17 
92 
18 
116 

Miles. 
6.75 
4.20 
3.20 
7.30 
5.25 
1.50 
4.66 
6.00 
3.37 

Rate. 
22.8' 
20.2' 
14.1 
22.6' 
16.4' 
11.3' 
19.7' 
3.0' 
34.1' 

Pleasantville,     

Shamhurg,  

Rouseville,  

Reno,                

Miiton  Farm,     .   .   . 

Fosters,         
Bullion  Run,  

(230)  Clintonville,   . 

Clintonville—  total,     
Clintonville,  bee  line,  S.  39°  W., 

778 

42.23 
39.5 

18.42 
19.70 

Table  D2,  Along  the  axis  of  development. 
Southern  (Butler-Clarion)  belt. 


230 

Do<rt,own*                to    Turkey  City,               .   . 

10' 

1.00 

10' 

220 

Turkev  City            to    Foxburg, 

120 

4  75 

25' 

100 

Fox  burg                  to    Parker, 

40 

1.50 

27' 

60 

Parker                      to    Farrentown,     

50 

2.33 

21' 

10 

Farrentown             to    Fronsinger  Farm,  

30 

2.00 

15' 

—  20 

Fronsinger  Farm  to    Argyle,       

50 

2.00 

25' 

70 

30 

1  00 

30' 

—100 

Petrolia                    to    Karns,         

60 

1.75 

34' 

—160 

Karns                       to    Millerstown,     

85 

3.25 

26' 

—  245 

Millerstown            to    St.  Joe,           

15 

3.50 

4' 

—260 

St.  Joe                      to    Carbon  Centre,    

34 

2.00 

17' 

—294 

Carbon  Centre        to    Humes  Farm,  

81 

2.00 

40' 

—375 

Humes  Farm          to    Herman  Station,  (418',)   .   . 

43 

2.75 

15' 

Dogtown  to  Herman  Station  —  Total,     
Dogtoivn  to  Herman  /Station,  bee  line,  S.  27°  W., 

648 

29.83 
28.25 

21.72 
22.93 

Table  E. 

Tidioute  to  Clintonville,  as  above,                        .   . 

778 

42.23 

18.42 

Clintonville  to  Dogtown,  (Strike,) 

o 

o 

Dogtown  to  Herman  Station, 

648 

29.83 

21  72 

Tidioute  to  Herman,  along  development,  

19.80 

1426 

72.06 

Tidioute  to  Herman,  bee  line,  S.  21°  W.,  

62.00 

23.00 

Table  F. 

Tidiou 
Dogto 
Tidiov 

te  to  Dogtown,      S.  19°  Wv 
wn  to  Herman  Station,  ...                       S.  27°  W. 

778 

648 
1426 

34.0 

28.25 
62.00 

22.88 
22.93 
23.00 

ite  to  Herman  Station,   S.  21°  W., 

Table  G. 

Tidioute  (1008')  to  Shippenville  (370'),     .    .   .    S.  8°  W., 
Pithole  (683'+45'=728')  to  Turkey  City  (220'),  S.  7°  W., 
Foster  (363)  to  Modoc  (200),    S.  5°  W., 

638 
508 
563 

29. 
22 
24 

22' 
23 
23 

*  Same  level  as  Clintonville  in  last  table. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

The  Butler -Clarion  Oil  belt  map. — The  Oil-production  of 
the  belt.  —  The  Cross  or  Fourth  sand  belt. 

(Illustrated  by  Plate  IX.) 

§  331.  The  map  of  the  Butler,  Armstrong  and  Clarion 
Oil  fields,  in  two  sheets  forming  Plate  IX,  was  partly  drawn 
in  the  winter  of  1875  by  Messrs.  F.  A.  Hatch  and  Arthur 
Hale  while  working  up  the  notes  of  the  previous  season's 
field  work. 

§  332.  This  map  was  originally  intended  to  serve  as  a 
skeleton  base  for  details  to  be  obtained  by  subsequent  sur- 
veys.* Our  principal  base  lines  at  that  time  extended  from 
Parker  City  to  St.  Joe  ;  from  Petrolia  to  Greece  City  ;  and 
from  Foxburg  to  Shippenville. 

Nothing  more  was  done  toward  collecting  material  for  the 
map  until  late  in  1876,  when  Mr.  H.  Martyn  Chance  and 
Mr.  Hale  prolonged  the  line  from  St.  Joe  to  Herman  Station 
and  also  lined  across  from  Petrolia  to  Brady's  Bend.  In 
the  winter  following  Mr.  Chance  drafted  the  map  anew, 
enlarged  it  from  the  notes  of  his  own  surveys,  and  added 
the  profile  section  at  the  bottom. 

§  333.  It  was  found  that,  while  the  surveys  made  and  the 
data  collected,  sufficed  for  the  study  of  the  general  features 
of  structure  underground,  they  would  not  serve  the  purpose 
of  settling  difficult  local  geological  questions  with  an  exten- 
sion of  the  survey.  For  these  questions  accurate  and  com- 
plete well  records  were  needful ;  and  it  was  utterly  impos- 
sible to  obtain  such,  except  by  employing  a  number  of 
assistants  to  watch  and  measure  wells  as  they  were  bored, 
and  preserve  the  sand-pumpings  for  study.  As  this  could 
not  be  done  over  such  a  field,  except  at  great  expense,  it 

*No  opportunity  has  since  been  afforded  for  doing  additional  field  work  of 
this  kind  in  either  of  thes^  counties  and  consequently  the  map  is  not  tilled, 
out  in  detail  as  wag  originally  intended. 

10  III.  (14:  m.) 


146  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

was  obviously  a  waste  of  time  to  make  spirit  level  surveys 
simply  to  locate  oil  wells  and  get  their  heights  above  ocean 
level,  when  nothing  could  be  learned  of  their  geological 
record,  except  the  one  fact  of  the  depth  of  the  oil-produc- 
ing sand  beneath  the  mouth  of  the  well. 

§  334.  The  systematic  detailed  surveys,  made  by  Prof. 
White  in  southern  Butler,  and  by  Mr.  Chance  in  northern 
Butler  and  Clarion,  diminished  still  further  the  necessity 
for  completing  the  map  in  the  mode  originally  intended. 

§  335,  The  map  is  therefore  published  as  drawn,  to  show 
the  geographical  extent  of  Butler- Clarion  oil  district ;  and 
to  indicate  the  trend  of  the  central  or  main  developement 
along  the  "Third  Sand  Belt,"  from  the  northeastern  ex- 
tremity of  productive  territory  in  Clarion  county,  to  its 
southwestern  termination  in  Butler  county.  The  new  dis- 
tricts which  have  been  opened  up  since  then,  to  the  right 
or  left,  can  easily  be  located  by  those  who  desire  to  study 
the  subject  in  detail. 


Production. 

§  336.  The  first  paying  oil  well  on  the  Butler-Clarion 
belt  was  obtained  on  the  Allegheny  river  at  Parkers  landing, 
in  the  fall  of  1868 ;  and  operations  spread  out  but  a  short 
distance  from  that  point  during  the  years  1869  and  1870. 

§  337.  In  1871,  the  somewhat  unexpected  measure  of  suc- 
cess attending  the  test  wells  which  were  advancing  toward 
the  northeast  into  Clarion  county,  and  also  those  toward 
the  southwest,  into  Butler  county,  started  forward  develop- 
ments in  both  these  directions,  which  resulted  in  pretty 
thoroughly  outlining  within  the  next  three  years  the  main 
or  central  belt. 

Subsequently,  side  lines  of  development  were  run,  and 
the  district  was  found  to  widen  out  in  many  places  and  to 
contain  side  belts  and  pools ;  with  oil  sometimes  in  the 
Fourth  sand,  sometimes  in  the  Third,  and  in  some  locali- 
ties even  in  rocks  above  the  Third  sand — all  which  aided 
very  materially  in  augmenting  the  production. 

.§  338.  In  1874,  the  maximum  development  of  the  district 


PRODUCTION.  III.  147 

was  reached,  during  the  great  Fourth  sand  or  "cross  belt" 
excitement. 

The  average  production  for  the  month  of  July  in  that 
year,  was  28,424  barrels  per  day  ;*  or  an  average  of  IT^Vir 
bbls.  per  day  to  each  of  the  1,600  wells  then  at  work. 

From  this  date  (1874),  although  the  wells  constantly  in- 
creased in  numbers,  the  production  gradually  declined 
until — 

§  339.  In  1877  extensive  new  developments,  principally 
in  Clarion  county,  added  very  largely  to  the  daily  out-put, 
as  the  following  figures  based  on  Mr.  Stowell's  reports  will 
show. 

Average  Average  Average 

During          No.  of  Wells.        Production  daily.    Production  per  well. 


1875 1696 20,060  bV 

1876 2346 14,490 

1877 3889 22,787 

1878 4650 18,730 

1879 4315      11,840 


Is 11.828  bbls. 

1  8.308     " 

•  5.859     " 

1  4.028     " 

i  2.744     " 


The  second  column  showing  the  average  number  of  wells 
at  work  in  the  district  during  the  year. 

The  Profile  section. 

§  340.  The  general  structure  of  the  oil  group  along  the 
central  line  of  operations  on  tJie  Butler-Clarion  belt  is  shown 
in  the  profile  section  on  Plate  IX  ;  where  dotted  lines  in- 
dicate the  horizons  of  the  Butler  Third  and  Fourth  sands 
and  explain  why  no  ' '  Fourth  -sand ' '  was  found  at  Parkers 
Landing. 

Here  (at  Parkers  Landing)  the  oil  came  from  the  lowest 
member  of  the  Oil  group — the  representative  of  the  Oil- 
Creek  Third  sand,  and  so  the  rock  was  very  properly  called, 
not  the  Fourth  sand,  but  the  Third. 

In  Clarion  county,  however,  and  likewise  in  Butler,  the 
oil  first  obtained  came  from  a  rock  higher  in  the  series. 
But  the  drillers  of  the  early  wells  did  not  notice  the  change 
from  one  horizon  to  another ;  and  consequently  supposed 
that  they  were  still  getting  the  oil  from  the  Parker  Third 
sand. 

•According  to  Stowell's  Petroleum  Reporter. 


148  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

After  the  development  had  reached  Modoc  and  Petrolia, 
it  began  to  be  suspected  that  there  might  be  two  oil  horizons 
instead  of  only  one,  and  then  commenced  the  experiment 
of  deeper  drilling  at  Petrolia,  and  elsewhere,  which  finally 
resulted  in  the  development  of  the  "Cross  Belt,"  which 
was  also  called  the  "Fourth  sand  belt." 

The  profile  shows  how  the  "'Third'''  and  "Fourth"  sands 
of  Butler  and  Clarion  must  unite  to  form  the  Third  sand 
at  Parkers,  if  the  drillers  nomenclature  of  the  oil  sands  be 
followed. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

1.  A  profile  section  from  lake  Erie  to  West  Virginia. 
%.  A  vertical  section  of  known  oil  producing  formations. 

(Illustrated  by  plates  X  and  XI.) 

§  341.  A  grave  misapprehension  exists  in  the  minds  of 
many  oil  producers  regarding  the  true  relationship  of  the 
oil  rocks  of  one  locality  to  those  of  another.  Because  it 
can  be  shown  on  a  map  that  nearly  all  of  the  oil  producing 
areas  of  Pennsylvania,  Ohio  and  West  Virginia  are  in- 
cluded within  the  limits  of  a  comparatively  narrow  gen- 
eral belt  of  country,  stretching  from  northeast  to  south- 
west, it  is  taken  for  granted  by  those  who  do  not  stop  to 
reason  much  about  it,  that  the  oils  of  different  localities 
along  this  general  belt  are  all  produced  from  one  and  the 
same  series  of  rocks. 

This  erroneous  idea  has  given  occasion  to  a  great  deal 
of  injudicious  drilling  along  lines  run  merely  to  connect  a 
district  producing  oil  from  one  horizon,  with  another  dis- 
trict producing  oil  from  a  higher  or  lower  rock. 

§  342.  When  Bradford  first  began  to  give  signs  of  prom- 
ise as  an  oil  field,  the  map  of  western  Pennsylvania  being 
consulted,  the  embryo  development  was  found  to  be  on  a 
nearly  direct  continuation  of  the  Clarion  county  oil  belt. 
Immediately  several  transit  lines  were  started  by  different 
parties  and  run  through  from  the  old  to  the  new  ground. 
Each  surveyor  had  his  own  particular  angle  of  deviation 
from  the  meridian  to  run  by  ;  and  each  one,  as  far  as  pos 
sible  carefully  kept  the  exact  bearing  and  location  of  his 
line  a  secret. 

§  343.  A  statement  was  published  at  that  time,  and  much 
quoted  as  a  proof  of  the  unerring  exactness  of  this  method 
of  tracing  an  oil  belt,  provided  the  the  bearing  of  the  ' '  lead ' ' 
had  been  properly  calculated.  As  the  story  went,  a  "belt 

( 149  III. ) 


150  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS        JOIIX  F.  CARLL. 

line  expert"  ran  one  of  these  lines  sixty-five  miles  through 
an  almost  unbroken  forest,  employing  an  engineer  who  had 
never  been  over  the  country  before,  and  who  knew  abso- 
lutely nothing  about  the  work  beyond  the  bald  fact  that  he 
was  traveling  by  a  designated  d'egree  of  the  compass,  never- 
theless the  line  thus  run  conducted  its  fortunate  projector 
out  of  the  woods,  down  the  mountain  side  into  the  valley 
of  Tunangwant  creek,  to  a  station  within  a  few  feet  of  the 
largest  well. at  that  time  known  in  the  Bradford  district. 
And  this  termination  of  the  line  was  considered  by  many 
as  a  conclusive  proof  that  all  the  lands  through  which  that 
line  passed  were  "on  the  oil  belt !  " 

§  344.  The  profile  section  on  Plate  X,  and  the  vertical 
section  on  Plate  XI,  have  been  prepared  for  the  purpose  of 
exhibiting  the  fallacy  of  such  views  ;  and  to  enable  the 
reader  to  see  at  a  glance,  what  some  of  the  fundamental 
features  of  the  sedimentary  structure,  of  the  oil  region 
especially,  are. 

§  345.  The  profile- section  Plate  X,  follows  a  line  upon 
the  map  drawn  from  Black  Rock  on  the  Niagara  river,  in 
Erie  county  New  York,  to  Pittsburgh  and  thence  to  Dunkard 
creek  oil -field  in  Dunkard  township,  Greene  county,  close 
to  the  West  Virginia  State  line. 

From  Black  Rock  to  Pittsburgh  the  bearing  of  this  line 
is  S.  20°  W.—  distance  about  175  miles. 

From  Pittsburgh  to  Dunkard  creek,  its  bearing  is  S.  3° 
E.  — distance  50  miles. 

§346.  Places  on  the  line  of  profile,  Plate  X.—  Starting 
at  Black  Rock  the  line  crosses  the  foot  of  lake  Erie  and 
strikes  the  southeasterly  shore  at'  Lakeview,  in  Erie  county 
N.  Y. 

Thence  it  runs  through,  or  very  near  to,  the  following 
places:—  Jamestow n,  N.  Y.  ;  Youngsmlle,  on  Big  Broken- 
straw  creek,  in  Warren  county,  Pa.  ;  Tidioute  on  the  Alle- 
gheny river,  in  Warren  county;  President  on  the  Alle- 
gheny river,  in  Yenango  county;  Foxburg  on  the  Allegheny, 
in  Clarion  county  ;  Parkers  Landing,  on  the  Allegheny,  in 
Armstrong  county;  and  Petrolia,  Miller  stown  and  Great 
Belt  city,  (or  Summit]  in  Butler  county. 


PROFILE  SECTION.  III.  151 

Thus  it  may  be  said  to  follow  the  Butler  oil  belt  very 
nearly  along  its  line  of  best  development. 

§  347.  It  is  evident  that  as  this  allignment  of  the  profile 
section  coincides  geographically  so  nearly  with  the  trend  of 
the  Bulter  and  Venango  oil  sands,  there  can  be  no  trouble 
in  properly  locating  upon  it  the  Venango  oil  sand  group. 

§  348.  The  Warren  oil  development,  however,  lies  some 
8  miles  to  the  east  southeast  of  our  line  ;  and  the  Bradford 
oil  development,  some  30  miles  from  it  in  the  same  direction. 

§  349.  Now  it  is  a  remarkable  and  important  fact,  that  in 
no  boring  in  Pennsylvania  has  the  Warren  group  of  oil 
rocks  (unmistakably  developed)  been  seen  directly  beneath 
the  Venango  group. 

It  is  equally  a  fact,  that  in  no  boring  has  the  Bradford 
"Third"  sand  been  seen  directly  below  the  Warren  group. 

In  other  words,  we  have  not  a  single  direct  oil  well  meas- 
urement between  these  several  groups ;  and  therefore  we 
must  trust  to  some  pretty  nice  and  difficult  calculations, 
when  we  try  to  determine  the  thicknesses  of  these  intervals — 
that  is,  when  we  attempt  to  place  the  Warren  and  the  Brad- 
ford oil  rocks  in  their  proper  places  in  our  profile  section. 

But  whatever  inaccuracies  of  detail  may  thus  creep  into 
the  section,  it  will  still  suffice  to  show  the  relative  positions 
of  such  oil  horizons  as  have  been 'profitably  worked  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  country. 

It  will  certainly  demonstrate  the  folly  of  drilling  on  so- 
called  belt  lines,  run  from  one  producing  district  to  another, 
regardless  of  the  age  or  equivalence  of  the  rocks  to  be  con- 
nected.* 

§  350  The  Vertical  Section,  Plate  XI,  is  intended  to 
show  that  oil  has  been  produced  from  ten  or  twelve  differ 
ent  geological  horizons  in  the  earth's  crust,  ranging  through 
a  thickness  of  about  4,500  feet  of  sedimentary  strata.  And 
the  most  skillful  oil  producer,  the  most  expert  geologist, 

*It  must  never  be  forgotten  that  a  "line  well  "  may  prove  remunerative 
by  discovering  a  local  oil  horiz  m  not  before  known;  but,  in  that  case  its  suc- 
cess as  an  oil  well  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  theory  on  which  it  was. 
located  ;  or,  in  plainer  terms  the  line  run  to  locate  it  can  have  nothing  to  do 
with  the  existence  of  the  local  horizon  of  oil  which  may  be  thus  fortunately- 
explored. 


152  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      J01IX  F.-CARLL. 

cannot  tell  how  many  other  oil  horizons  may  exist  at  inter- 
mediate depths  beneath  the  surface,  (•*".  e.  in  the  scale  of  the 
formations)  but  which,  being  good  only  within  certain  geo- 
graphical limits,  have  as  yet  escaped  the  oil  miner's  drill. 

§  351.  The  lowest  horizon*  in  our  country  from  which 
oil  in  paying  quantities  has  been  obtained  is  that  of  the 
Corniferous  limestone  f  formation,  the  home  of  the  Cana- 
dian oil. 

This  rock  can  be  unmistakably  identified  at  Black  Rock 
in  New  York ;  and  therefore  Black  Rock  has  been  selected 
as  the  northern  end  of  our  profile  section,  Plate  X. 

§  352.  The  next  and  only  other  point  at  which  the  eleva- 
tion of  the  Corniferous  limestone  can  be  fixed,  is  in  the 
Coburn  gas  well  at  Fredonia,  Chautauqua  county,  N.  Y., 

*  Oil  lias  been  found  or  struck  at  lower  horizons  yet,  but  in  insufficient 
quantities. 

f  "The  color  of  the  Corniferous  lime&tone  varies  from  a  light  greyish  blue, 
to  dark  blue  or  black,  and  it  is  sometimes  even  of  a  light  gray  or  drab  color. 
It  contains  numerous  nodules  of  hornstone,  and  the  strata  are  sometimes  sep- 
arated by  irregular  layers  of  the  same.  In  other  localities  these  layers  of 
hornstone  increase  in  number  and  thickness  to  the  almost  entire  exclusion  of 
calcareous  matter,  and  they  then  present  a  very  harsh  outline."  *  *  "At 
the  eastern  end  of  the  district  the  hornstone  is  intermingled  and  interstratified 
with  the  calcareous  strata,  the  whole  very  dark  colored.  The  same  character 
prevails  at  the  western  extremity  of  the  district,  where  the  rock  outcroping 
on  the  Niagara  has,  from  its  black  color,  given  name  to  the  village  of  Black 
Rock." 

"  It  will  be  observed,  that  in  all  cases  where  this  rock  is  highly  developed,  the 
Onondaga  limestone,  the  next  rock  below,  is  but  meagerly  so.  For  all  prac- 
tical purposes,  in  the  Fourth  district,  the  two  masses  may  be  considered  as 
one.  They  are  intimately  connected,  forming  together  the  limestone  terrace, 
and  there  are  few  good  localities  where  both  are  not  to  be  seen.  In  litholog- 
ical  character,  there  is  scarcely  more  difference  between  the  Onondaga  and 
the  Corniferous,  than  in  different  parts  and  different  localities  of  the  latter 
rock." 

"  It  forms  a  slight  barrier  at  the  outlet  of  Lake  Erie,  at  Black  Rock,  prxluc- 
ing  a  rapid  current  with  considerable  descent,  and  presenting  a  small  island 
just  above  the  water  which  is  all  that  now  remains  to  show  that  the  rock  was 
once  continuous  from  the  two  shores." 

"  The  point  of  greatest  thickness  actually  measured  is  on  Allen's  creek  [near 
LeRoy,  Genesee  co.]  where  it  is  seventy-one  and  a  half  feet.  At  the  eastern 
extremity  of  the  district,  the  thickness  cannot  be  more  than  half  this,  and  at 
same  points  I  have  estimated  it  at  thirty  feet.  At  Black  Rock  there  is  about 
twenty-five  feet  laid  open  to  view ;  but  the  higher  part  of  the  rock  is  not  visi- 
ble, and  from  (he  deep  alluvion  covering  it  further  east,  it  cannot  be  correctly 
estimated."  (Geol.  of  New  York,  1843,  Part  IV,  pp.  161  et  seq.  by  Jas.  Hall.) 


PROFILE  SECTION.  III.  153 

for  in  our  own  State,  as  far  as  known,  it  has  never  been 
reached  by  the  deepest  borings.'* 

§  353.  The  average  pitch  of  the  Corniferous  limestone 
towards  the  southwest  can  be  calculated  from  its  elevation 
at  Black  Rock  and  Fredonia,  allowing  us  to  judge  approxi- 
mately of  the  thickness  of  the  measures  between  it  and  the 
Venango  oil  group. 

At  Black  Rock,  as  shown  by  the  quotations  below,  the 
exact  thickness  of  the  rock  is  not  known.  We  have  as- 
sumed the  top  to  lie  about  52  ft.  above  the  surface  of  Lake 
Erie,  or  625  ft.  above  ocean  level,  which  cannot  be  far  wrong. 

In  the  Coburn  well  at  Fredonia  it  is  said  to  have  been 
struck  at  a  depth  of  1050  ft.  which,  (the  elevation  of  the 
well  mouth  being  735')  puts  it  315  ft.  below  ocean  level  at 
that  place. 

The  distance  from  Black  Rock  to  Fredonia  is  about  38 
miles  in  a  direction  S.  35°  W.  and  this  gives  an  average  slope 
or  dip  of  about  25  ft.  per  mile. 

But  along  our  section  line  (S.  20°  "W.)  the  average  dip  of 
the  limestone  ought  to  be  stronger  than  25'  per  mile,  because 
the  line  runs  more  nearly  in  the  direction  of  the  line  of 
greatest  dip  as  calculated  from  other  strata  which  admit  of 
more  accurate  tracing.  And  this  inference  is  strengthened 

*As  the  thickness  of  limestone  reported  in  the  Coburn  well  is  rather  sur- 
prising, it  may  be  well  to  state  here  a  few  facts  in  relation  to  the  well,  as  given 
by  Mr,  Coburn  himself  who  has  several  specimens  of  the  sand  pumpings  still 
preserved  in  his  office. 

In  digging  the  conductor  to  the  rock  some  gas  appeared.  After  the  drill 
was  introduced  the  gas  increased  all  the  way  down  to  700  ft.  below  which  point 
no  further  increase  was  obtained. 

The  limestone  was  struck  at  1,050  ft.  and  continued  until  the  drill  was 
stoped  at  1,207  it.  It  was  "hard  and  flinty"  and  produced  neither  oil  or  gas. 

The  well  is  tubed  at  700  ft.  The  lower  part  of  the  hole  fills  up  to  the  tubing 
with  salt  water.  The  pump  is  put  in  motion  about  once  a  year,  but  there 
seems  to  be  no  accumulation  of  water  above  the  bottom  of  the  tubing. 

The  flow  of  gas  is  4,000  cubic  feet  per  day  by  measurement.  P. essure  19  Ibs. 
per  square  inch.  The  well  was  drilled  in  1871  or  1872  and  is  apparently  deliv- 
ering as  much  gas  now  (Oct.  1877)  as  when  first  struck. 

Mr.  Colburn  kindly  gave  me  some  specimens  of  limestone,  one  of  which, 
coming  from  a  depth  bf  1,200',  contains  a  well  preserved  fossil  shell,  readily 
recognized  as  the  Atrypa  prisca,  figured  in  geology  of  N.  Y.  Vol.  IV  page  175. 


154  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

by  the  fact  that  no  limestone  is  reported  in  Jonathan  Wat- 
son's  deep  well  near  Titusville.  * 

§  354.  The  distance  from  Black  Rock  to  Watson1  s  well 
is  about  100  miles.  Direction  S.  26°  W.  Elevation  of  well 
month  1290  ft.  above  ocean.  Depth  of  well  3553  ft. 

On  an  average  slope  of  25'  per  mile  the  limestone  should 
have  been  found  at  1875  ft.  below  ocean  level,  or  3165'  from 
the  surface.  But  as  no  limestone  was  seen  in  the  well,  we 
must  conclude  either  that  it  is  absent  in  that  locality  (which 
is  hardly  probable)  or  that  it  has  a  greater  average  dip 
slope  than  25'  per  mile  in  that  direction. 

As  the  well  stopped  at  2263'  below  ocean  level,  an  average 
of  29'  per  mile  would  put  the  limestone  at  2275'  or  12  feet 
beneath  the  well.  A  greater  dip  would  of  course  put  it  still 
deeper. 

§  355.  A  number  of  other  deep  wells  are  shown  on  the 

*  Owing  to  a  combination  of  unfortunate  circumstances  the  record  of  this 
important  well  cannot  be  given. 

In  an  exceptional  and  expensive  experiment  of  deep  drilling,  such  as  this 
was,  it  could  not  be  expected  that  the  owner  of  a  well  would  allow  it  to  be 
•watched  and  measured  as  an  ordinary  well  might  be,  or  that  he  would  give 
to  the  public  facts  which  his  money  paid  for  until  satisfied  that  his  own  inter- 
ests no  longer  demanded  secrecy.  Prudential  considerations  suggested  that 
the  daily  revelations  of  the  drill  should  be  known  only  by  those  connected 
with  the  well,  but  Mr.  Watson  instructed  his  drillers  to  keep  a  good  record, 
and  to  preserve  sand  pumpings  whenever  a  change  of  rock  occured,  so  that  a 
satisfactory  history  of  the  well  might  be  given  to  the  survey  when  the  proper 
time  should  come.  This  was  all  that  could  be  asked  and  probably  shortly 
after  the  work  stopped  a  very  good  record  could  have  been  obtained.  But  Mr. 
Watson  did  not  yet  feel  willing  to  make  the  details  public  because  he  intended 
soon  to  put  up  heavier  machinery  and  sink  the  well  deeper 

Thus  the  matter  lay  for  a  couple  of  years,  and  then  when  an  attempt  was 
made  to  get  at  the  facts  it  was  found  the  record  had  been  mislaid  or  lost,  and 
that  the  specimens  had  suffered  the  usual  fate  of  all  such  collections  in  an  oil 
producers  office — some  of  the  bottles  had  been  emptied  because  they  were 
wanted  for  other  purposes  and  others  had  lost  their  labels  and  were  worthless. 
But  three  reliable  specimens  remained.  One  of  these  is  of  considerable  im- 
portance as  it  shows  the  character  of  a  15  foot  band  of  black  slate  at  a  depth 
of  2,600  ft.  This  was  one  of  the  most  noticeable  strata  in  the  well  and  possibly 
may  represent  the  Genesee  slate  of  X.  Y.  Bluish  slaty  shales  with  occasional 
hard  "shells"  were  found  below  this  with  very  little  change  in  the  character 
of  the  drilling,  all  the  way  to  the  bottom  and  Mr.  Watson  is  positive  that  no 
limestone  was  passed  through.  A  hard  rock  was  reported- however  just  as 
the  utmost  limit  of  drilling  cable  forced  a  suspension  of  the  work  at  a  depth 
of  3,553  feet  from  the  surface. 


PROFILE  SECTION.  III.   155 

proiile  ;  but  it  will  be  seen  that  none  of  them  .  have  gone 
deep  enough  to  reach  the  Corniferous  limestone.  The  Wat- 
son well  is  not  only  the  deepest  boring  ever  made  in  Wes- 
tern Pennsylvania,  but  it  is  also  deeper  geologically  than 
any  other.  It  is  greatly  to  be  regretted  therefore  that  so 
little  can  be  known  of  its  history. 

§  356.  Localization  of  the  oil  horizons  to  certain  areas. — 
A  person  unacquainted  with  the  laws  of  sedimentary  de- 
position and  with  the  methods  of  preparing  a  profile-sec- 
tion, might  inadvertantly  be  led  to  suppose  from  an  exam- 
ination of  the  profile  section  plate  X,  that  the  different 
strata  represented  there  spread  out  continuously  and  uni- 
versally in  every  direction  under  the  oil  regions  ;  that  a 
well  failing  to  produce  oil  in  the  Venango  group,  might  be 
put  down  four  or  five  hundred  feet  deeper  and  pump  oil 
from  the  Warren  group,  and  then  five  hundred  feet  deeper 
and  renew  itself  in  the  Bradford  "Third"  sand. 

But  such  has  not  been  the  experience  of  oil  producers. 
The  several  groups  of  oil  producing  rocks  are  locally  well 
defined  under  certain  areas  ;  but  they  have  their  geograph- 
ical as  well  as  their  geological  limits,  and  as  far  as  at  pres- 
ent known,  the  geographical  limit  of  one  group  never  over- 
laps that  of  another. 

If  we  take  a  map  and  outline  upon  it  the  limits  of  the 
Smith's  Ferry  and  Slippery  Rock  oil-producing  district — 
and  then  the  Butler,  Clarion  and  Venango — and  then  the 
Warren — and  then  the  Bradford — we  shall  see  that  each 
has  its  own  particular  locus  ;  and  that  the  different  districts 
are  separated  from  one  another  by  areas  (of  greater  or  less 
extent)  which  have  been  pretty  thoroughly  tested  by  the 
drill  and  proven  to  be  unproductive. 

§  357.  Structural  variations,  Plate  X. — Theoretically  the 
structure  represented  in  this  section  is  correct.  The  hori- 
zons of  the  various  strata  of  limestone,  shale,  and  sandstone, 
do  lie  superimposed  one  upon  the  other  in  regular  order  as 
\here  delineated. 

But  the  physical  constitution  of  these  sedimentary  rocks 
is  in  fact  very  variable.  It  must  have  been  true  in  all  ages, 
that  every  deposit  of  sandstone  in  one  locality  must  have 


1^6  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOH*T  F.  CARLL. 

been  represented  by  cotemporaneous  deposits  of  shales  in 
other  localities.  Hence  it  happens  that,  in  tracing  rocks 
long  distances,  the  sandstones  disappear  and  shales  come 
in  at  the  same  geological  horizon. 

It  may  not  then  be  presumed  that  each  particular  sand- 
stone, or  its  oil,  will  be  found  in  every  locality  where  its 
horizon  can  be  pierced  by  the  drill,  or  that  a  measured  sec- 
tion of  the  rocks  in  one  place  can  be  precisely  duplicated 
in  detail  in  another. 

Vertical  Section. 

§  358.  Summary  sketch  of  the  formations  exhibited  in  the 
Vertical  Section,  Plate  XL  This  generalized  section  extends 
from  the  surface  rocks  in  the  Upper  Barren  Coal  series  of 
Greene  county,  Pa.,  down  to  the  Corniferous  limestone,  the 
Canadian  oil  rock,  and  will  enable  any  one  to  distinguish 
and  locate  the  several  oil  horizons  thus  far  discovered  and 
profitably  worked  in  these  measures.  It  is  in  fact  an  en- 
larged representation  of  the  features  presented  in  the  Pro- 
file Section  Plate  X. 

GROUP  No.  1. 

Upper  Barren  Coal  Measures,  B.  —  "Greene  county 
group."  Thickness  600'. 

Vertical  Range. — From  surface  to  top  of  Washington 
Upper  limestone. 

Composition. — Shales,  sandstones,  thin  beds  of  limestone 
and  coal. 

Exposures. — The  high  lands  of  central  and  southwestern 
Greene  county,  Pa. 

Authority. — Prof.  J.  J.  Stevenson,  Report  K,  p.  35,  and 
White  and  Fontaine,  Report  PP. 

Upper  Barren  Coal  Measures,  A.  —  "Washington  county 
group."  Thickness  350'. 

Vertical  Range. — From  top  of  Washington  Upper  lime- 
stone to  top  of  Waynesburg  sandstone. 

Composition. — Shales,  sandstones,  limestones  and  thin 
beds  of  coal ;  but  carrying  also  the  "Washington  coal  bed  " 
from  7'  to  10'  thick.  In  Washington  county  6  beds  of  lime- 


VERTICAL  SECTION.  III.  157 

stoi^e  compose  about  one- third  of  the  mass,  but  in  Greene, 
the  limestones  are  thin  and  less  frequent. 

Exposures.— In  the  highlands  of  Washington  and  Greene 
counties.  See  Keport  K,  p.  44. 

GROUP  No.  2. 

Upper  Productive  Coal  Measures. — Thickness  475' 
Vertical  Range.  — From  top  of  Waynesburg  sandstone 
to  base  of  Pittsburgh  coal. 

Composition. — Shales  and  sandstones  with  three  thick 
bands  of  limestone  and  several  thick  coal  beds,  of  which 
the  Waynesburg  and  the  Pittsburgh  are  the  most  important. 

Exposures. — Throughout  Washington,  Greene  and  Alle- 
gheny counties.  See  detailed  section  in  Prof.  Stevenson's 
Report  K,  page  57. 

GROUP  No.  3. 

Lower  Barren  Coal  Measures.— Thickness  500'. 

Vertical  Range.  —From  base  of  Pittsburgh  coal  to  top 
of  Mahoning  sandstone. 

Composition. — Shales  and  sandstones,  with  some  thin 
beds  of  limestone  and  coal. 

Exposures. — Partially  seen  in  Washington  and  Allegheny 
counties  and  in  the  highlands  of  southern  Butler ;  but  bet- 
ter developed  in  Beaver  county,  where  Mr.  White's  detailed 
section  of  these  measures  was  taken.  See  Report  K,  pp. 
75,  76.* 

*  Prof.  Stevenson  gives  the  section  referred  to  above  as  a  typical  one  of  the 
Lower  Barrens  in  Beaver  county,  and  it  will  also  probably  hold  good  in  a  gen- 
eral way  in  Allegheny,  Washington  and  Greene,  where  the  exposures  were 
so  imperfect  that  a  complete  detailed  section  could  not  be  obtained.  But  in 
the  Dunkard  creek  oil  wells  he  says  "the  interval  between  the  Pittsburgh 
coal  and  Mahoning  SS.  is  not  far  from  425  feet ;  but  this  interval  increases 
northward  and  northwestward  until  in  Beaver  county,  according  to  Mr.  White 
it  is  from  530' to  540'." 

He  adds  on  page  77  (and  this  is  quoted  to  show  the  similarity  of  structure 
pervading  all  deposits  of  interstratified  sandstones  and  shales,  whether  in  the 
Barrens  of  the  Carboniferous  or  in  the  Venango  oil  group— and  in  confirma- 
tion of  opinions  to  that  effect  expressed  in  other  parts  of  this  report)  "  So 
great  and  so  frequent  are  the  changes  in  the  sandstones  and  shales  of  this 
series,  that  a  detailed  discussion  of  the  whole  would  be  intelligible  only  by  a 
comparison  of  a  large  number  of  sections ;  but  for  the  most  part  the  rocks  are 
of  so  little  interest  or  importance  that  such  a  comparison  would  be  only  a 
waste  of  time  and  space,  edifying  to  neither  the  author  nor  the  reader." 


158  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

GROUP  No.  4. 

Lower  Productive  Coal  Measures. — Thickness  400'. 

Vertical  Range. — From  top  of  Mahoning  SS.  to  top  of 
Conglomerate  No.  XII. 

Compositon. — Sandstones  and  shales,  with  several  good 
and  persistent  coal  seams  and  two  important  beds  of  lime- 
stone— the  "Freeport"  and  the  "Ferriferous." 

Exposures. — This  series  is  exposed  over  a  large  extent 
of  country  in  Butler,  Armstrong,  Clarion,  Beaver,  Lawrence 
and  Venango  counties.  See  Mr.  Chance's  detailed  section, 
Report  Y,  page  16. 

Prof.  Stevenson  states  (Report  K,  p.  392)  that  the  Mahon- 
ing sandstone,  the  top  member  of  this  group,  is  the  central 
and  principal  oil-bearing  rock  of  the  three  sands  found  in 
oil  wells  on  Dunkard  creek,  Greene  co.  *  It  also  appears  to 
be  an  oil-producing  rock  in  Westmoreland  county,  where 
a  number  of  oil  and  salt  wells  have  been  sunk  through  it. 

The  Ferriferous  limestone  of  this  group  is  the  great  lime- 
stone of  Butler,  Armstrong  and  Clarion  counties  and  the 
oil  miners  "key  rock "  in  sinking  oil  wells  in  these  sections. 
It  is  from  5'  to  25'  in  thickness  and  lies  from  30'  to  80'  above 
the  Homewood  sandstone,  the  top  member  of  Conglomerate 
No.  XII. 

GROUP  No.  5. 

Mountain  sand  series,  including  the  Pottsmlle  conglom- 
erate No.  XII,  and  probably  in  some  localities,  some  of  the 
sandstones  belonging  to  the  upper  Pocono  sandstone  No.  X, 
(No.  XI  being  either  thin,  or  wanting.)  Thickness  from  350 
to  425'  ft.— say  375  feet. 

Vertical  Range. — From  top  of  Homewood  sandstone  to 
the  base  of  the  Olean- Garland- Ohio  conglomerate,  or  second 
mountain  sand  of  the  Venango  oil  wells. 

Composition. — A  group  of  variable  conglomerates  and 
sandstones  interstratified  with  shales  and  enclosing  sporadic 
beds  of  iron  ore  and  coal ;  two  of  the  coal  beds,  the  Mercer 
and  Sharon  being  of  great  importance.  It  also  carries  in 
some  localities  two  thin  bands  of  limestone — (the  Mercer 
Upper  and  Lower.) 


VERTICAL  SECTION.  III.  159 

Exposures.— In  the  highlands  of  Mercer,  southern  Craw- 
ford, Venango,  Forest,  Warren  and  McKean  counties. 

The  lower  members  of  this  group  produce  heavy  oil  at 
Smith's  Ferry,  in  Beaver  county,  and  on  Slippery  Rock 
creek,  in  Lawrence  county  and  the  upper  conglomerate  is 
said  to  be  the  source  of  some  oil  in  Kentucky. 

GROUP  No.  6. 

Crawford  shales,  thickness  400'  to  500'— say  450'. 

Vertical  Range. — From  the  base  of  the  Mountain  sand 
series  to  the  top  of  the  Venango  oil  group. 

Composition. — Shales  and  slates,  enclosing  the  PitTiole 
grit  near  the  centre  of  the  mass.  In  some  localities  100  ft. 
or  more  of  the  lower  part  is  composed  of  red  shale;  in 
others  no  red  appears.  The  upper  part  in  some  sections 
contains  quite  important  beds  of  sandstone. 

Exposures. — Only  favorably  seen  in  cliffs  bordering  the 
streams  in  parts  of  Forest,  Venango,  Mercer,  Crawford, 
Warren  and  McKean  counties, — its  northern  outcrop  being 
always  obscured  by  drift. 

The  horizon  of  the  PitTiole  grit  appears  to  furnish  the 
light  gravity  amber  oil  at  Smith's  Ferry  and  Ohioville  in 
Beaver  county,  with  traces  of  the  same  on  Slippery  Rock 
creek  in  Lawrence  county.  It  also  probably  yields  the 
heavy,  lubricating  oil  of  the  Mecca  district  in  Trumbull 
county,  Ohio.  (See  Chap.  8.) 

GROUP  No.  7. 

Venango  Oil  Group.—  Thickness  300'  to  375'.     Say  350' 

Vertical  Range. — From  the  top  of  the  First  Oil  sand 
(the  "  Second  sand"  of  the  driller  in  Butler  county)  to  the 
bottom  of  the  Third  Oil  sand  (called  the  "Fourth  sand" 
in  Butler,  Armstrong  and  Clarion,  and  the  "Fifth  sand" 
in  some  parts  of  Venango  county.) 

Composition. — A  group  of  variable  sandstones,  in  some 
places  conglomeritic,  and  locally  divided  into  several  mem- 
bers by  irregular  beds  of  slates  and  shales,  some  of  which 
are  red. 

Exposures. — These  rocks  as  a  group,  lie  with  a  remark- 


160  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

able  uniformity  of  slope  and  general  structure,  in  a  com- 
paratively narrow  belt,  from  Herman  Station  in  Butler 
county,  to  Tidioute  in  Warn  n  county.  They  make  no  con- 
spicuous outcrops  to  the  northwest,  but  appear  t  j  lose  their 
sandy  characteristics  before  reaching  the  surface. 

At  Tidioute,  the  deep  gorges  of  Dennis  run  and  the  Alle- 
gheny river  expose  the  First  and  Second  Oil  sands,  and  as 
far  up  as  Warren  it  is  quite  probable  that  we  see  the  upper 
portion  of  the  group  exposed  in  the  river  hills.  These  are 
the  only  localities  where  a  portion  of  the  group  in  even  an 
approximately  normal  condition  may  be  seen  above  water 
level.  Its  horizon  is  cut  through  by  many  of  the  ravines 
of  McKean  county,  but  it  has  there  become  so  changed  in 
its  physical  aspects,  that  it  disappears  or  becomes  unrecog- 
nizable when  the  proper  range  for  its  outcrop  is  reached. 

These  are  the  oil  sands  of  Tidioute  and  Colorado,  War- 
ren county ;  Fagundus,  Forest  county ;  Church  Run  and 
Titusville,  Crawford  county  ;  and  of  all  the  well  known  oil 
centres  in  Venango,  Clarion,  Armstrong,  and  Butler  coun- 
ties. 

They  produce  oil  in  different  localities  from  the  different 
members  of  the  group  ranging  from  30°  to  52°  in  gravity  and 
varying  greatly  in  color — Green  oil  from  the  Third  sand, 
on  Oil  creek ;  black  oil  from  the  Stray  sand  at  Pleasantville  ; 
amber  oil  from  the  Second  sand  in  many  places  ;  and  dark 
heavy  gravity  oil  from  the  First  sand  at  Franklin.  There 
are  also  occasional  local  deposits  of  oil,  shading  from  a 
light  straw  color  to  almost  a  jet  black. 

GROUP  'No.  8. 

Interval  between  tlie  Venango  oil  group  and  the  Warren 
oil  group.—  Thickness  300'±. 

Vertical  Range.—  From  the  base  of  the  Venango  Third 
oil  sand  to  the  top  of  the  Warren  oil  group. 

Composition. — Soft  shale  of  a  bluish-grey  color,  but  con- 
taining some  beds  of  green,  purple  and  red,  with  irregular 
bands  of  thin-bedded  bluish-grey  sandstones. 

The  wells  at  Warren,  even  when  favorably  located,  do  not 
pass  through  the  Venango  group  in  its  normal  condition, 


VERTICAL  SECTION.  III.   161 

nor  do  the  wells  on  the  Venango  belt,  when  sunk  to  the 
proper  depth,  as  many  of  them  have  been,  find  the  Warren 
oil  shales  and  sands,  with  oil ;  consequently  no  direct  meas- 
urement of  this  interval  can  be  made  in  oil  wells.  In  the 
section,  we  have  assigned  a  thickness  to  the  mass  which 
places  the  Yenango  and  Warren  Oil  groups  as  near  as  may 
be  in  their  proper  relative  positions  vertically,  at  Warren. 

GROUP  No.  9. 

Warren  Oil  group. — Thickness  about  300  ft. 

Vertical  Range,  and  Composition. — This  group  may  be 
viewed  as  including  the  so-called  Second,  Third,  arid  Fourth 
sands  of  Warren  ;  but  its  composition  is  so  variable  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  district  that  it  does  not  afford  any  per- 
sistent bands  of  sandstone,  by  which  to  define  either  its 
upper  or  its  lower  limit. 

At  north  Warren  the  upper  part  is  shaly,  and  the  largest 
wells,  it  is  claimed,  flowed  from  these  shales,  while  others 
got  their  oil  from  the  ' '  Third  sand. ' '  At  Warren  the  Second 
sand"  is  fairly  developed,  but  the  oil  generally  comes  in 
the  Third  sand. ' '  At  Stoneham  a  lower  sand,  the  ' '  Fourth ' ' 
produces  the  oil.  Thus  the  North  Warren  shales  are  rep- 
resented at  Stoneham  by  more  sandy  measures  which  con- 
tain no  oil,  and  the  Stoneham  "Fourth  sand  "  is  poorly 
developed  at  North  Warren,  and  unproductive.  The'group 
then  may  be  said  to  extend  from  the  top  of  the  North  War- 
ren shales  to  the  bottom  of  the  Stoneham  sandstone,  cov- 
ering an  interval,  as  nearly  as  may  be  calculated,,  of  about 
300  ft. 

GROUP  No.  10. 

Interval  between  the  Warren  Oil  group  and  the  Brad- 
ford "Third  sand."—  Thickness  from  400'  to  450'— say 
400  ft. 

Vertical  Range. — From  the  Stoneham  oil  sand  to  the 
Bradford  oil  sand  ("Third"). 

Composition. — Slates  and  shales,  generally  of  a  bluish 
color  but  sometimes  inclined  to  red  or  brown,  interstratified 
with  thin  bands  of  bluish-grey,  micaceous,  flaggy  sand- 
11  III. 


162  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

stones.  The  sand  pumpings  show  this  interval  to  be  very 
fossiliferous. 

Similar  difficulties  are  encountered  in  estimating  the 
thickness  of  this  group  to  those  mentioned  in  No.  8.  A 
large  number  of  wells  have  been  sunk  between  Bradford 
and  Warren,  but  the  rocks  are  so  variable  in  composition 
and  the  well  records  have  been  so  imperfectly  kept,  that  no 
completely  satisfactory  identification  of  the  rocks  of  the 
Warren  oil  group  with  their  equivalents  at  Bradford,  or 
of  the  Bradford  "  Third  sand'"  with  its  corresponding 
stratum  at  Warren,  can  yet  be  made.  The  interval  between 
the  two  oil  horizons,  however,  appears  to  be  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  400  ft.  as  above  given. 

This  interval  holds  the  Bradford  "Second  sand"  which 
has  yielded  oil  in  many  of  the  McKean  county  wells  and 
also  the  sandy-shale  horizon  producing  ' '  slush  oil ' '  along 
the  Tuna  Valley. 

GROUP  No.  11. 

' '  Bradford  Third  sand. ' '     Thickness  from  20  to  80  feet. 

Composition. — A  fine-grained,  light  to  dark-brown  sand- 
stone, containing  pebbles  the  size  of  pin  heads  in  some  lo- 
calities, while  in  others  it  is  little  more  than  a  sandy-shale. 
It  appears  to  be  rather  thin  and  irregularly  bedded,  is  fre- 
quently inters  tratified  with  thin  layers  of  grey,  slaty,  sand- 
stone, and  contains  many  fossil-shells  and  fish  bones. 

The  constitutional  peculiarities  of  the  rock — its  color,  its 
composition  and  its  structure — insure  its  ready  recognition 
by  the  driller  in  any  locality  where  he  may  find  it  in  even 
an  approximately  normal  condition.  But  this  rock,  like  all 
others,  has  its  geographical  limits,  outside  of  which,  its 
geological  horizon  can  only  be  traced  by  the  exercise  of 
the  greatest  of  care  and  the  best  of  judgment  in  keeping 
and  studying  the  well  records. 

It  is  seldom  however  that  good  records  of  wells  on  de- 
batable territory  are  kept.  The  well  owner  always  starts 
the  drill  on  the  presumption  that  the  oil  rock  will  be  found. 
He  calculates  in  his  own  way  its  approximate  depth  from 
the  surface,  and  makes  a  contract  to  drill  so  many  feet. 


VERTICAL  SECTION.  III.   163 

Confident  of  success  he  urges  on  the  drill  making  no  par- 
ticular note  of  the  character  of  the  upper  rocks.  But  when 
the  supposed  horizon  of  the  sand  is  reached  and  the  evi- 
dences of  its  presence  do  not  appear  as  anticipated,  he 
discovers  too  late  that  he  has  nothing  to  check  by,  to  ascer- 
tain whether  the  oil  rock  is  actually  wanting  or  only  so 
changed  in  character  as  to  be  scarcely  recognizable,  or 
whether  there  may  not  have  been  some  mistake  in  calcula- 
ting its  position  in  the  well.  Thus  it  often  happens  that 
wells  of  this  class  are  abandoned,  after  drilling  in  doubt 
for  a  few  days,  without  having  been  sunk  to  the  proper 
depth ;  while  others  are  carried  on  down  many  feet  below 
the  horizon  of  the  sand  they  are  in  quest  of ;  and  much 
valuable  information  is  lost  which  a  little  prudent  foresight 
might  have  secured. 

The  Bradford  ^  Third  sand"  may  be  satisfactorily 
located  in  the  Wilcox  wells,  near  the  southerly  line  of  Mc- 
Kean  county.  At  Tidioute,  in  Warren  county,  thirty-five 
miles  nearly  due  west  from  these  wells,  the  base  of  the 
Venango  group  is  well  defined.  Between  these  two  points — 
the  nearest  geographical  approximation  that  can  at  present 
be  made — both  groups  evidently  undergo  rapid  and  radical 
changes  in  composition,  and  the  well  records  are  vague  and 
unreliable ;  hence  no  absolute  determination  of  the  thick- 
ness of  the  mass  of  shales  lying  between  the  two  groups 
can  here  be  made. 

Somewhat  better  facilities  are  afforded  for  a  study  of 
these  measures  by  carefully  tracing  the  rocks  from  Tidioute 
to  Warren  (15  miles)  and  then  from  Warren  to  Bradford 
(25  miles).  But  even  along  these  lines  the  structure  is  so 
obscure  that  mistaken  identifications  are  quite  likely  to  be 
made. 

These  facts  are  stated  to  explain  why  there  is  yet  some 
uncertainty  regarding  the  thickness  of  the  vertical  interval 
between  the  Venango  oil  group  and  Bradford  "Third  sand." 
The  figures  cannot  differ  materially,  however,  from  those 
given  in  the  vertical  section  Plate  XL 


164  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

GROUP  No.  12. 

Interval  between  the  Bradford  ' '  Third  sand ' '  and  t7ie 
Corniferous  limestone,  commencing  in  the  Chemung  and 
including  the  Portage  and  Hamilton  groups  of  the  New 
York  geological  survey.  Thickness  1600'±. 

Composition. — In  the  imperfect  records  of  wells  that  have 
been  sunk  into  these  measures  in  various  parts  of  the  coun- 
try, we  simply  find  recorded—''  shales,  slates  and  soapstone, 
with  occasional  sand  shells."  The  upper  part  for  two  or 
three  hundred  feet  appears  to  contain  considerable  sandy 
material,  and  some  of  these  sand  beds  produce  oil  along 
the  Tuna  valley  in  the  vicinity  of  Limestone,  Cattaraugus 
county,  N.  Y.  Below  this  the  drillings  show  principally 
slate  and  soft  mud  rocks.  No  important  bands  of  sand- 
stone and  no  oil  have  been  reported. 

The  thickness  of  this  interval  must  be  left  questionable 
for  reasons  previously  stated.  We  have  no  means  of  tra- 
cing the  Corniferous  limestone  south  of  Fredonia,  N.  Y. 
except  approximately,  by  its  slope.  The  distance  from 
Fredonia  to  Bradford  is  about  48  miles,  direction  about 
S.  45°  E.  A  dip  of  20'  to  the  mile  would  be  required  to 
place  the  limestone  at  Bradford  as  shown  in  our  section. 

GROUP  No.  13. 

The  Corniferous  Limestone,  probably  shown  in  the  ver- 
tical section  Plate  XI,  in  conjunction  with  the  Onondaga 
limestone. 

The  composition  of  this  group  has  already  been  referred 
to  in  the  quotations  given  from  Geology  of  New  York. 

It  is  the  oil  producing  rock  of  the  Canadian  oil  regions, 
but  at  Fredonia,  N.  Y.  yields  neither  oil  or  gas.  We  may 
not  presume  therefore  that  it  will  ever  be  found  to  be  an 
important  oil  horizon  in  Pennsylvania,  and  even  if  it  should 
prove  to  be  productive  here,  the  great  depth  at  which  it  lies 
beneath  the  surface  must  be  a  very  serious  obstacle  in  the 
way  of  its  development.* 

*  Beneath  the  Corniferous  or  Upper  Helderberg  limestone,  lie,  in  regular 
order  downwards:  —  Oriskany  sandstone  —  Lewistown  limestone  and  other 
Lower  Helderberg  calcareous  rocks— Clinton  red  and  other  shales  with  fossil 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Causes  for  withholding  Well-Records  from  geologists. 

§359.  Their  abundance. — It  is  said  that  about  four  thou- 
sand well-shafts  were  sunk  in  the  oil  fields  of  Penna.  and 
New  York  during  the  one  year  of  1877. 

Never  before  in  the  history  of  the  enterprise  were  wells 
put  down  so  rapidly.  Scattered  over  every  part  of  western 
Penna.  from  Smiths  Ferry,  near  Ohio,  to  Olean  in  New 
York — from  Lake  Erie  to  the  Allegheny  mountains — they 
were  necessarily  drilled  on  every  class  of  territory  ;  on  that 
known  to  be  gooft  as  well  as  that  recognized  as  purely  ex- 
perimental on  account  of  its  being  outside  of  previously 
tested  areas.  They  were  drilled  in  districts  producing  oil 
from  all  the  known  horizons  extending  down  from  the  Ma- 
honing  sandstone  to  the  Bradford  oil  rock,  and  many  of 
them  were  carried  down  several  hundred  feet  below  the 
Bradford  oil  horizon  in  quest  of  something  new. 

§  360.  Total  length  of  boring. — Allowing  these  wells  each 
to  average  1056'  in  depth  (and  this  is  undoubtedly  too  low 
an  estimate)  every  five  wells  aggregated  one  mile  of  rock, 
making  altogether  800  miles  of  bore  hole  drilled  in  one 
year! 

§  361.  Small  percentage  of  good  recording. — What  a 

ore  beds  and  sandrocks— Medina  and  Oneida  sandrocks,  forming  many  of  the 
mountains  of  middle  Pennsylvania — Hudson  river  and  Utica  slates— Trenton, 
Birdseye,  Chazy  and  Calciferous  magnesian  limestones,  forming  many  of  the 
broad  valleys  of  middle  Pennsylvania  and  containing  great  deposits  of  brown 
hematite  iron  ore — and  Potsdam  sandstone,  the  bottom  formation  of  the  Pal- 
aeozoic system. 

Under  these  lie  vast  formations  of  chlorite  and  mica  slates,  gneisses  and 
primary  limestones,  with  serpentine  rocks,  conglomerates,  porphyries,  traps, 
and  huge  beds  of  magnetic  and  specular  iron  ore,  belonging  to  the  Huronian 
and  Lawrentian  systems. 

As  the  Palseozeic  rocks  are  20,000  feet  thick  in  front  of  the  Allegheny  mount- 
ain, it  is  probable  that  a  well  in  the  oil  region  would  require  to  be  put  down 
a  good  deal  deeper  than  10,000  feet  to  strike  the  Huronian  floor. 
( 165  III. ) 


166  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

broad  field  for  geological  study  would  their  records  have 
afforded  if  they  had  been  properly  kept  and  were  now  ac- 
cessible to  us.  But  unfortunately  for  the  interests  of  the 
survey,  the  oil  producer  is  drilling  solely  to  benefit  himself 
and  cares  very  little  for  the  advancement  of  science  or  the 
financial  welfare  of  those  who  may  drill  after  him.  Of  this 
large  number  of  wells,  probably  there  has  not  been  pre- 
served a  special  record  of  one  in  a  hundred,  and  but  few 
of  those  that  have  been  preserved  can  be  obtained  in  a  shape 
to  be  of  any  use  to  the  Survey. 

To  those  who  are  unacquainted  with  the  business  of  oil- 
producing  and  the  methods  of  drilling,  this  may  seem 
strange  ;  and  it  will  be  a  matter  of  wonder  to  scientific  men 
abroad,  that  the  survey  has  been  able  to  secure  so  little, 
comparatively,  to  illustrate  the  underground  structure  of 
the  oil  regions,  when  such  wide-spread  developments  by  the 
drill  has  been  constantly  going  on  in  the  country. 

A  few  words  in  explanation  here,  to  set  the  matter  right, 
both  as  it  regards  ourselves  and  the  oil  producer,  may  not 
be  considered  out  of  place  in  this  report. 

§  362.  Drilling  ~by  Contract.  —Nearly  all  the  wells  at  the 
present  time  are  bored,  not  by  the  well  owners,  but  by  men 
who  take  the  job  of  drilling  by  contract.  The  carpenters 
rig  having  been  erected  and  the  boiler  and  engine  set  up, 
the  contractor  agrees  to  furnish  his  own  tools,  cable,  fuel, 
&c.,  and  to  drill  the  well  a  certain  depth  or  to  the  oil  bear- 
ing rock,  for  a  stipulated  sum,  or  at  so  much  per  foot ; 
binding  himself  to  deliver  a  good  clear  hole  ready  for  the 
tubing,  or  no  pay.  Wells  are  drilled  much  more  rapidly 
and  cheaply  than  they  were  five  years  ago,  and  the  com- 
pensation is  such  that  a  contractor  can  only  make  money 
by  making  fast  time.  The  drill  must  be  kept  constantly 
in  motion  and  the  men  employed  have  no  time  to  spare  for 
anything  but  the  work  in  hand.  The  delay  occasioned  by 
measuring  depths,  preserving  sand  pumpings  and  recording 
facts,  necessary  to  give  a  record  any  scientific  value, 
would  cost  a  contractor  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  dollars 
in  loss  of  time  on  an  ordinary  well.  We  cannot  therefore 
reasonably  expect  or  ask  him  to  make  this  sacrifice  purely 


WITHHOLDING  WELL-RECORDS.  III.  167 

in  the  interest  of  science.  He  has  no  need  of  the  minute 
details  which  it  requires,  and  while  he  recognizes  the  dif- 
ferent sands  in  a  general  way  as  the  drill  goes  down,  and 
mentally  notes  for  the  time  being,  any  unusual  features  in 
their  structure,  his  main  thought  is  to  complete  the  contract 
as  soon  as  possible  without  mishap  ;  and  when  that  is  done, 
having  no  further  interest  in  the  matter,  even  these  general 
outlines  of  the  well's  history  are  soon  forgotten. 

The  well  owner,  manifestly  can  give  only  such  a  record 
as  is  returned  to  him  by  the  contractor.  This  is  usually  a 
brief  memoranda  giving  the  depth  to  the  oil  sand,  its  thick- 
ness and  the  best  point  at  which  to  explode  a  torpedo — facts 
very  good  as  far  as  they  go,  but  too  meager  to  be  of  much 
practical  use  to  the  geologist 

§  363:  Record  circular  issued  by  the  Survey. — At  the 
commencement  of  the  survey  it  was  hoped  that  both  well 
owners  and  contractors  would  see  it  to  their  interest  to  aid 
the  work.  Nearly  every  operator  spoken  to  on  the  subject 
expressed  a  willingness  to  assist  in  collecting  reliable  well 
records,  and  some  went  so  far  as  to  insert  a  clause  in  their 
subsequent  drilling-contracts  requiring  an  accurate  register 
of  the  well  as  a  part  of  the  work  to  be  performed.  To  facili- 
tate matters  and  give  the  contractor  as  little  trouble  as  pos- 
sible, blanks  were  furnished  by  the  Survey,  to  be  filled  in 
by  the  driller  as  the  work  advanced  ;  and  to  make  plain 
the  method  of  recording  the  facts  required,  a  duplicate  form 
was  struck  off  to  serve  as  a  guide  or  key.  On  this  key  a  sup- 
posititious well  record  was  printed  in  a  different  color  from 
the  body  of  the  blank,  so  that  any  one  could  see  at  once  how 
the  blanks  should  be  filled.  A  copy  of  the  key  is  given 
on  the  next  page,  the  italics  representing  that  which  was 
printed  in  color. 


168  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHIST  F-  CARLL. 


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WITHHOLDING  WELL-KECOKDS.  III.  169 

§  364.  Value  of  the  circulars  returned. — The  blanks  and 
key  were  sent  out  together  and  it  was  expected  that  this 
would  insure  uniformity  in  the  records  and  result  in  the 
acquisition  of  much  valuable  information.  But  these  an- 
ticipations were  not  realized.  Not  one  blank  out  of  ten  was 
returned,  and  many  of  those  that  did  come  back  bore  such 
palpable  evidences  of  having  been  written  up  from  memory 
after  the  well  was  completed  rather  than  from  actual  meas- 
urement and  annotation  during  the  period  of  drilling,  that 
their  value  rated  very  low  and  some  of  them  had  to  be  dis- 
carded altogether. 

§  365.  Utility  of  well  records  not  appreciated. — In  many 
.cases  it  is  not  alone  the  pecuniary  consideration  involved 
in  a  loss  of  time,  that  prevents  a  contractor  from  keeping 
a  detail  record,  but  he  fails  to  do  so  because  he  sees  no 
utility  in  it,  being  perfectly  satisfied  in  his  own  mind  that 
he  thoroughly  understands  the  structure  where  he  is  drill- 
ing and  honestly  believing  that  he  can  give  a  record  from 
memory  sufficient  for  all  economical  or  scientific  purposes. 

Other  obstacles  are  encountered  in  endeavoring  to  obtain 
records,  which,  while  they  are  only  what  should  naturally 
be  expected  under  the  circumstances  might  seem  very  singu- 
lar to  the  uninitiated  if  left  without  explanation. 

§  366.  Secrecy  observed  about  trial  wells  in  new  terri- 
tory.— Wells  that  are  drilled  in  new  and  untried  territory, 
and  those  that  are  sunk  to  exceptional  depths,  are  of  es- 
pecial value  to  us.  Their  records,  as  a  general  rule  are  much 
more  accurately  kept  than  others,  for  the  owners  and  drillers 
pay  closer  attention  to  the  changes  in  stratification — as  a 
general  rule,  too,  no  one  can  find  out  any  thing  reliable 
about  them.  Quite  often  it  is  so  much  to  the  interest  of 
the  driller,  land  owner  and  lessee  to  falsify  or  at  least  ob- 
scure the  records  by  varying  versions,  that  it  is  very  unsafe 
to  base  conclusions  upon  them  eAren  if  they  can  be  obtained. 

§  367.  The  interest  of  the  driller  in  doctoring  the  record.  — 
We  must  not  presume  the  average  driller  to  be  less  or  more 
scrupulously  honest  than  other  men.  He  is  working  for 
money  and  is  shrewd  enough  to  know  how  to  take  advant- 
age of  opportunities  for  advancing  his  own  interests.  If 


170  III.    KEPOKT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

he  is  drilling  for  a  strong  company  who  have  faith  in  their 
territory  and  pluck  to  continue  to  drill  notwithstanding  a 
few  dry  holes,  he  in  all  probability  will  assure  them,  that 
in  the  first  well  put  down,  the  rocks  were  "regular"  but 
the  third  sand  was  a  little  to  fine  and  close  in  texture,  show- 
ing plainly  the  edge  of  the  belt.  The  question  then  arises 
which  way  to  move  the  rig  for  another  -venture.  In  this 
discussion  he  is  uncertain  and  wavering  until  the  spot  is 
selected  by  the  owners.  Then,  although  he  acquiesces  in 
their  decision  and  readily  goes  to  work  on  No.  2  he  begins  to 
express  doubts  as  to  the  location  of  it,  and  feels  pretty  con- 
fident they  ought  to  have  moved  east  instead  of  west,  or 
nice  versa.  No.  2  is  finished.  It  is  dry  ;  and  of  course  the 
sandrock  is  reported  thinner  and  finer  and  not  so  good  as 
in  No.  1.  Evidently  the  rock  must  thicken  on  the  other 
side  of  No.  1.  Result,  another  dry  hole  put  down  in  that 
direction.  Three  wells  secured  to  be  drilled,  by  a  little 
manipulation  of  the  contractor,  and  the  profits  pocketed, 
when  in  all  probability  there  was  nothing  in  the  first  one, 
if  the  stratification  had  been  properly  watched  and  studied, 
to  warrant  even  a  second  venture. 

Some  of  the  most  unreliable  records  I  have  examined  are 
those  returned  to  extensive  operators  and  systematically  re- 
corded in  their  books,  by  men  whose  interest  it  was  to  agree 
with  the  theories  of  their  employers,  and  who  found  it  more 
profitable  to  arrange  the  records  in  accordance  with  their 
ideas  of  structure,  than  to  follow  with  fidelity  the  precise 
stratification  as  the  drill  disclosed  it. 

§  368.  Tlie  interest  of  the  land  owner  in  doctoring  the 
record. — In  the  case  of  land  owners  and  lessees  very  cogent 
reasons  frequently  present  themselves  for  witholding  well 
records  from  the  public.  Acting  on  some  closely  kept  the- 
ory of  his  own  which  he  has  worked  out  from  pervious  suc- 
cesses in  prolific  areas  ;  or  guided  by  spiritual  influences  ; 
or  led  by  the  divining  rod  or  magnetic-oil-indicator  of  some 
professional  well-locator ;  or  following  lines  drawn  from 
one  district  to  another,  regardless  of  the  age  or  stratigraph- 
ical  relationships  of  the  rocks  he  is  attempting  to  trace  ;  or 
governed  by  the  appearance  of  conglomerate  on  the  surface  ; 


WITHHOLDING  WELL-RECORDS.  III.  171 

or  directed  by  whatever  controlling  influence  it  may  be— 
the  operator  goes  out  into  a  new  field  in  search  of  oil.  He 
secures  large  bodies  of  land  by  lease  or  purchase  investing 
perhaps  tens  of  thousands  of  dollars.  He  adds  to  this  the 
cost  of  sinking  a  well.  Is  it  to  be  wondered  at  if  he  feels 
that  the  information  he  gains  is  his  own,  or  that  he  should 
lepel  with  jealous  care  every  attempt  made  to  pry  into  the 
history  of  his  venture  ? 

If  the  well  is  not  a  pronounced  success,  he  may  be  satisfied 
from  indications  discovered  in  drilling,  that  he  is  near  the 
belt  and  can  locate  his  next  well  on  the  right  spot.  But 
this  may  necessitate  the  securing  of  more  land  which  he  can 
only  get  by  concealing  his  record,  feigning  discouragement 
and  temporarily  abandoning  the  enterprise,  until  those  who 
hold  the  land  he  wants,  expecting  to  make  him  pay  roundly 
for  it  in  case  of  success,  are  induced  to  forfeit  their  leases 
or  transfer  them  for  a  nominal  consideration  to  some  party 
secretly  employed  by  him  to  secure  them. 

§  369.  Traditional  sentiment  that  wells  have  failed  be- 
cause not  deep  enough. — If  on  the  other  hand  the  well  is 
unquestionably  a  failure  and  he  sees  that  he  has  made  a 
mistake  and  located  in  hopelessly  dry  territory,  it  is  equally 
to  his  interest  to  prevent  the  record  from  being  made  pub- 
lic. There  is  no  difficulty  in  assigning  some  plausible  reason 
for  the  non-productiveness  of  a  well — bad  management  of 
the  contractor ;  water  not  effectually  cased-off ;  inadequate 
testing;  insufficiency  of  depth,  only  discovered  after  aban- 
donment, *&c.,  &c.  Rumors  like  these,  particularly  the  one 
in  relation  to  depth,  once  started,  are  readily  taken  up  by 
the  land-owners  in  the  vicinity.  They  all  honestly  believe, 
as  they  assert,  that  "there  is  no  reason  why  there  should 
not  be  just  as  much  oil  here  as  on  Oil  creek  if  a  well  is  put 
deep  enough."  The  idea  that  a  failure  to  find  oil  always 
proves  the  well  not  to  be  deep  enough,  seems  to  be  univers- 
ally prevalent  among  old  settlers,  and  it  matters  not  whether 
the  location  is  on  the  Lake-slope,  where  the  drill  starts  geo- 
logically 1000  feet  below  the  Yenango  oil  sands,  or  in  the 
center  of  the  coal  fields  of  Westmoreland  county,  where  it 
commences  its  work  2000  feet  above  them.  Deeper  drilling 


172  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

in  every  case  is  supposed  to  be  the  only  thing  needed  to 
procure  oil. 

After  a  rest  of  a  few  years  the  oil-fever  will  in  all  prob- 
ability again  break  out  in  the  abandoned  district.  By  this 
time  the  unwritten  history  of  the  old  well  has  become  a 
family  legend  in  the  neighborhood.  No  one  knows  defi- 
nitely anything  about  the  stratification,  but  everybody  near 
it  knows  that  the  well  was  not  deep  enough — that  the  rocks 
were  "regular"  as  far  as  drilled,  the  oil- show  good  and  the 
prospects  decidedly  encouraging.  A  new  party  now  comes 
into  the  field,  bated  by  these  common  reports,  which  agree 
perhaps  with  what  he  conceives  should  be  the  situation  ac- 
cording to  some  theory  upon  which  he  is  operating,  and 
ventures  a  second  well.  This  attracts  attention  in  that  di- 
rection and  creates  more  or  less  excitement  which  the  first 
party  probably  helps  to  fan,  and  then  before  the  second 
well  is  down,  he  quietly  sells  out  to  some  of  the  sanguine 
new-comers,  thus  materially  lessening  the  losses  the  enter- 
prise would  otherwise  have  entailed  upon  him,  had  he  made 
the  true  situation  known  by  putting  on  record  for  public 
use  a  carefully  kept  register  of  the  well  when  drilled. 

§  370.  Publicity  opposed  by  good  business  policy. — 
From  a  business  point  of  view  and  looking  only  to  personal 
interest,  there  is  no  reason  why  any  oil-producer  should 
allow  his  well  records  to  become  public  property.  If  he  has 
made  a  successful  venture,  the  prompt  publication  of  the 
fact  causes  an  eager  crowd  to  rush  in  around  him  on  all 
sides,  and  he  is  often  obliged  in  consequence  to  drill  more 
rapidly  than  he  otherwise  would,  to  protect  himself,  or  in 
other  words  to  secure  his  share  of  oil  in  the  pool  which  he 
has  discovered — for  it  is  now  well  known  by  experience  that 
oil  cannot  safely  be  "tanked  in  the  rock"  as  formerly  sup- 
posed, to  be  drawn  forth  when  wanted,  if  in  the  meantime 
wells  are  drilled  and  pumped  all  around  the  borders  of  the 
oil-bearing  "tank." 

Many  farms  known  to  be  good,  and  held  in  reserve  for 
development  when  the  price  of  oil  should  warrant,  have 
been  found  when  subsequently  tested,  to  the  chagrin  of 
their  owners,  to  be  almost  completely  drained  by  the  wells 


WITHHOLDING  WELL-RECORDS.  III.   173 

on  adjoining  lands  that  had  been  steadily  at  work  during 
the  intervening  time  in  depleting  the  reserved  pool  which 
no  farm  lines  could  protect  a  thousand  feet  below  the  sur- 
face. 

§  371.  The  geologist's  difficulties. — There  can  be  no  ques- 
tion but  that  these  are  some  of  the  causes  that  have  de- 
prived the  survey  of  much  valuable  information  of  which 
it  otherwise  might  have  been  able  to  avail  itself,  and  it  is  to 
be  regretted  that  it  is  precisely  that  kind  of  material  most 
needed  in  working  out  broadly  the  underground  structure 
of  the  oil  regions. 

But  who  can  censure  the  oil-producer  for  it.  He  is  only 
doing,  as  he  conceives,  what  any  prudent  man  would  do  to 
further  his  own  plans  and  facilitate  the  advancement  of  his 
own  interests. 

The  verdict  of  "no  one  to  blame,"  however,  does  not  help 
the  geologist  in  this  dilemma.  He  is  left  to  grope  on  in  the 
dark,  in  relation  to  every  new  field — forced  to  calculate  and 
work  out  deductions  as  best  he  can  from  data  obtained  at 
a  distance,  or  culled  from  a  mass  of  contradictory  and  un- 
satisfactory statements  as  liable  to  mislead  as  to  instruct. 
At  the  same  time  he  is  expected  to  know  all  about  it,  and 
his  views  of  its  structure,  extent  and  possibilities  are  often 
sought  by  the  very  men  who  are  withholding  or  purposely 
mystifying  the  facts  on  which  alone  a  reliable  opinion  could 
be  formed. 

He  is  thus  frequently  exposed  to  the  hazard  of  error  in 
judgment,  sometimes  by  relying  upon  plausible  representa- 
tions which  prove  not  to  be  well  founded  in  fact,  and  some- 
times by  unwittingly  rejecting  absolute  facts  because  tney 
are  presented  to  him  in  such  shape  and  under  such  circum- 
stances that  he  has  no  confidence  in  their  authenticity. 
His  task  is  a  thankless  one  at  best.  His  vocation  seems  to 
be  as  generally  misunderstood  by  the  well-informed  oil-pro- 
ducer as  by  the  most  illiterate  rustic.  The  one  supposes 
him  capable  of  telling  from  the  size  or  shape  of  a  pebble 
or  from  a  pinch  of  soil  just  what  may  lie  below  for  thou- 
sands of  feet,  the  other  is  confident  that  a  twenty-two  and 
a  half  degree  compass  line  is  a  safer  guide  for  oil  operations 


174  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

than  all  the  geology  in  the  world.  If  lie  attempts  to  trace 
the  probable  outlines  of  the  oil-bearing  rocks,  he  at  once 
incurs  the  displeasure  of  all  the  land- owners  and  interested 
parties  left  out  of  his  lines — if  he  makes  no  exhibit  of  the 
underground  structure,  he  is  set  down  as  a  failure,  so  that 
in  either  case  his  position  is  an  unenviable  one. 

§  372.  Obligations  of  the  survey  to  oil-producers  for  good 
records. — But  it  must  not  be  understood  that  these  remarks 
universally  apply  without  exception.  We  are  under  obli- 
gations to  many  of  the  oil-producers  of  the  district  for 
special  favors ;  for  the  privilege  of  copying  their  well  re- 
cords and  maps  ;  for  specimens  of  sand  pum  pings,  oil  and 
gas  from  their  wells  ;  for  fossils  &c  ;  and  within  the  devel- 
oped districts,  free  access  has  been  had  to  all  the  facts  and 
data  preserved.  The  gentlemen  who  have  thus  kindly  as- 
sisted us  are  too  numerous  to  mention  individually,  and  an 
acknowledgment  of  their  courtesy  and  good  will  can  only 
be  made  in  this  general  manner. 

As  before  stated,  however,  these  data  are  principally  such 
as  have  been  furnished  by  the  well-borer  for  purely  practi- 
cal purposes  in  immediate  connection  with  the  wells  to 
which  they  appertain,  and  are  frequently  imperfect  and 
emissive  in  those  portions  most  essential  for  broad  geolog- 
ical study. 

§  373.  Plan  adopted  for  securing  good  records.  —  To 
remedy  these  defects,  it  was  found  necessary  to  employ  a 
special  assistant  for  the  purpose  of  securing  a  few  accurately 
measured  and  detailed  well  sections  in  different  localities — 
The  results  of  his  work  will  be  given  in  the  following  chap- 
ters. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

1.  Bad  well  records  tlie  true  cause  of  the  confusion  in  the 

popular  names  and  positions  of  the  Oil  rocks. 

(Illustrated  by  Plate  XXXI.) 

2.  Method  of  measuring  two  groups  of  wells  by  the  Survey. 

§  374.  How  to  secure  well  records  in  a  complete  and  reli- 
able form  has  been  one  of  the  perplexing  questions  of  the 
Survey.  A  number  of  plans  were  tried  during  the  first 
two  years,  but  with  quite  unsatisfactory  results.  The  dif- 
ficulties in  the  way  are  numerous  and  sometimes  insur- 
mountable. Some  of  them  are  stated  in  Chapter  XVIII, 
and  others  may  here  be  added. 

§  375.  In  the  last  chapter  it  has  been  intimated  that  in 
the  ordinary  course  of  development,  proper  records  for 
geological  study  cannot  be  obtained.  Every  interest  of  the 
business  is  against  it.  The  contractor  is  drilling  to  make 
the  best  time  possible,  that  he  may  reap  the  largest  margin 
of  profit  on  his  contract.  The  well  owner  cares  nothing 
for  the  structure,  except  as  it  relates  to  the  oil-producing 
sand,  and  with  him  too  time  is  of  great  importance.  The 
work  cannot  be  delayed  by  superfluous  measurements,  and 
washing  of  sand-pum pings,  to  satisfy  what  they  consider 
to  be,  only  scientific  curiosity. 

In  districts  which  are  being  rapidly  developed  and  where 
the  drill-holes  are  clustered  closely  together,  a  delay  of  a 
few  days  in  the  completion  of  a  well  may  make  a  difference 
of  thousands  of  dollars  in  the  total  receipts  from  it.  There 
is  a  certain  amount  of  oil  in  a  pool,  and  those  who  reach  it 
first  have  the  advantage  of  a  strong  flow  and  full  supply 
until  others  tap  it  and  assist  in  diverting  and  relieving  the 
pressure.  In  such  situations  contracts  are  often  made 
giving  the  men  employed  on  a  well  fifty  cents  or  a  dollar 
a  day  extra  if  they  succeed  in  reaching  the  rock  within  a 

(175  III.) 


176  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

specified  time.  Everything  is  rushed  with  the  utmost 
speed.  There  is  no  time  for  scientific  inquiry  with  the  pos- 
sibilities of  a  hundred  or  perhaps  a  thousand  barrel  well  in 
prospect.  Even  the  most  staid  and  methodical  student  of 
nature  is  apt  to  forget  himself  when  he  becomes  a  well- 
owner  and  is  caught  up  and  carried  along  in  the  whirl  of 
excitement  pervading  the  atmosphere  of  a  new  and  prolific 
oil  field. 

§  376.  The  drillers''  record  is  almost  always  defective 
for  geological  purposes,  and  sometimes  in  very  essential 
particulars.  •  To  him  nothing  in  the  well  has  any  particular 
significance  but  sandrocks,  and  these  are  only  deserving  of 
careful  examination  when  lying  near  the  oil-producing  hor- 
izon. Consequently  the  upper  strata  are  carelessly  noted, 
and  the  characters  of  shales  and  slates  indefinitely  given. 

He  has  not  yet  learned  the  importance  of  a  close  scrutiny 
of  all  the  measures  drilled  through — particularly  the  oil 
group  proper — and  by  reason  of  this  inattention  to  the 
character  and  position  of  the  upper  rocks,  has  been  led  into 
many  errors  of  judgment  and  prevented  from  obtaining  as 
comprehensive  an  idea  of  the  general  structure  of  the  meas- 
ures as  he  might  otherwise  have  acquired. 

§  377.  The  driller  recognizes  no  geological  distinction 
between  the  higher  sands  and  Hie  oi\  group ;  assigns  no 
fixed  relative  positions  to  the4  respective  horizons  of  the 
several  oil  sands,  in  harmony  with  their  arrangement  where 
first  found  and  named  on  Oil  creek  ;  but  uses  the  designa- 
tions 1st,  2d,  stray  and  3d  sand  indiscriminately  in  different 
districts,  sometimes  applying  them  to  higher  rocks  in  the 
series  and  sometimes  to  lower — thus  introducing  great  con- 
fusion and  disorder  into  the  nomenclature  of  the  oil  meas- 
ures. 

§  378.  The  careless  numbering  of  the  sandrocks  gave  us 
the  4th  sand  above  the  true  3d  at  Pithole  and  Pleasantville  ; 
carried  the  stray  up  to  the  lower  division  of  the  2d  at  Tidi- 
oute ;  brought  the  2d  down  to  the  stray  at  Church  run ; 
raised  the  1st  up  to  the  Pithole  girt  horizon  in  Butler  coun- 
ty, and  introduced  under  it  in  that  locality  new  names — 
the  50  foot  rock,  30  foot  rock,  Blue  Monday,  Bowlder,  &c.,— 


POSITIONS  OF  OIL  ROCKS.  III.   177 

making  it  appear  as  if  there  was  no  regularity  in  the  gen- 
eral structure  of  the  oil  producing  rocks,  and  so  involving 
and  obscuring  the  order  of  stratification  that  no  one  could 
tell  positively  how  the  sands  of  one  district  were  related 
to  those  of  another. 

§  379.  Sections  68  to  73.—  This  popular  Babel  of  oil  rock 
stratification  is  graphically  illustrated  by  the  plate  of  sec- 
tions on  pages  178  and  179. 

The  same  plate  also  shows  how  simple  the  language  of 
nature  is,  after  all,  if  we  will  only  stop  to  read,  and  study 
to  interpret  it  aright. 

Six  sections  made  from  actual  oil  well  records  in  different 
localities,  and  drawn  to  an  uniform  scale,  are  grouped  upon 
the  plate  for  comparison.     The  complete  registers  may  be 
referred  to  as  follows  : 
Fig.  73  Tidioute';  Report  II,  well  No.  765. 

"    72  Church  run  ;  Report  II,  well  No.  965. 

' '    71  Pithole  and  Pleasantville  ;  Report  II,  Nos.  1  and  24. 

"    70  Oil  creek  ;  Report  II,  well  No.  112. 

"     69  Clarion  co.  Chapt.  XXI,  this  volume. 

"  68  Butler  co.  Report  II,  well  No.  1170. 
§  380.  Local  popular  arrangements  of  the  sands. — 
These  records  are  selected  because  they  give  the  order  of 
the  sands  in  accordance  with  their  numbers  and  relative 
positions  as  named  and  popularly  recognized  by  operators 
and  drillers  in  the  several  districts  where  the  wells  are 
located.  They  may  be  viewed  as  typical  representatives  of 
the  general  structure  of  the  areas  named,  although  a  com- 
parison of  them  with  other  records  from  the  same  neigh- 
borhoods, but  given  by  other  drillers,  will  disclose  almost  as 
much  local  variation  and  disagreement  of  names  and  hori- 
zons in  ea;ch  of  the  respective  districts  themselves,  as  is  to 
be  seen  here  in  these  six  widely  separated  wells. 

§  381.  True  and  universal  arrangement  of  the  oil 
sands. — But  whatever  irregularity  of  the  oil  rocks  may  be 
observed  in  the  sections  given  or  the  well  records  examined 
this  one  universally  prevailing  characteristic  will  be  noticed 
in  every  part  of  the  oil  field — immediately  above  the  true 
1st  sand  lies  a  mass  of  soft  rocks  from  150'  to  200  feet  thick — 
12  III. 


775  III. 


Karns  Gty. 


Hg69 

Ec/enburg. 


Plate  XXXI. 
Kg.  70. 

l  Cs-eeA. 


$  m-^:<V:K<-3$.  ZUU^.A. 

Ipiiiiiiiiiiiiii  jRed  rod 


1-stS.S. 


Red  rock. 


Plate  XXXI. 

Tig7J.  Vig.72. 

Pleasantville.        Church  Rim. 


III.  179 
TCg.73. 

Tidioute. 


180  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

a  complete  and  persistent  division  along  the  oil  belt,  between 
the  Pithole  grit  and  the  oil  group.  Every  driller  has  noticed 
this  fact,  every  correct  well  record  in  the  productive  dis- 
tricts shows  it ;  and  yet  no  particular  significance  has  been 
attached  to  it.  It  is  also  a  fact  equally  as  well  established 
by  deep  drilling,  that  no  sandstones  like  the  oil  sands  of 
Venango  are  found  for  hundreds  of  feet  below  the  produc- 
tive oil  group.  We  have  here  then,  a  well  deiined  band  of 
sandstones  and  shales  lying  between  thick  masses  of  purely 
argillaceous  rocks,  and  this  band,  from  303  to  370  feet  in 
thickness,  includes  all  the  oil  rocks  of  the  Venango  group. 

§  382.  Variability  of  the  oil  sands  taJcen  separately. — 
It  may  be  safely  said  that  the  oil  sands  individually  are 
extremely  variable — thickening  or  thinning  rapidly  in  this 
direction,  splitting  up  into  two  or  three  members  or  fading 
into  shales  in  that — whatever  may  be  the  persistency  and 
uniformity  in  thickness  of  the  whole  series  when  viewed  as 
a  group  ; — therefore  the  driller  discovers  very  marked  vari- 
ations in  the  several  members — in  thickness,  in  position,  in 
composition — and  no  precise  classification  of  them  that  he 
may  make  in  one  field  will  hold  good  in  every  particular 
in  another  at  a  distance  from  it.  But  the  natural  horizons 
of  the  three  sands  will  be  disclosed  in  every  locality  on  a 
proper  study  of  the  stratification.  This  being  the  case, 
consistency  requires  that  if  ordinal  numbers  are  used  at 
all  to  designate  these  sandstones,  they  should  only  be  ap- 
plied at  the  same  horizons  in  the  group,  and  as  near  as  may 
be  to  the  equivalents  of  the  same  strata  that  they  were 
originally  intended  to  represent :  1st  SS.  to  the  top  of  the 
group  ;  2d  SS.  to  the  middle,  and  3d  SS.  to  the  base— what- 
ever other  names  it  may  be  found  necessary  for  local  con- 
venience to  introduce  between  them. 

§  383.  First  arrangement  of  tJie  oil  sands  made  on  Oil 
creeJc. — It  so  happened  that  the  first  wells  on  Oil  creek  were 
drilled  in  a  valley  which  had  been  eroded  below  the  Pithole 
grit.  They  consequently  passed  through  no  sandrocks  but 
those  belonging  to  the  oil  group.  The  whole  group  was 
there  fully  developed  and  clearly  defined,  and  tho  "Three 
sands"  included  all  there  was  of  it.  The  records  of  tens 


POSITIONS  OF  OIL  ROCKS.  III.   181 

of  thousands  of  oil  wells  put  down  since  that  time,  confirm, 
(notwithstanding  their  confused  nomenclature)  the  general 
structure  then  announced  and  accepted  ;  and  it  is  folly  now 
to  think  of  commencing  to  number  the  oil  rocks  on  a  higher 
stratum,  or  to  persist  in  designating  the  base  of  the  group 
by  numbers  which  convey  the  impression  that  new-found 
strata  have  been  reached,  lying  below  what  was  called  the 
3d  sand  on  Oil  creek. 

§  384.  No  excuse  for  transposing  tJie  order  of  the  oil 
sands. — Referring  to  the  plate  on  page  178  above,  we  see 
that  there  is  no  obscurity  in  the  structure  of  the  oil  group 
when  properly  understood,  to  excuse  the  operator  for  the 
strange  transposition  of  terms  used  in  designating  its  sev- 
eral members. 

Tlic  Oil  cretfc  section.  Fig.  70,  may  be  viewed  as  the  nor- 
mal typo  of  stratification,  because  it  represents  the  order 
and  position  of  the  sandrocks  where  discovered  and  named. 
Here  the  driller  took  his  first  lessons  in  oil  sand  structure, 
and  it'  he  had  studied  intelligently,  when  he  afterward 
came  to  drill  at  Church  run,  the  thick  mass  of  210  feet  of 
soft  rock  below  the  1st  SS.  would  have  suggested  at  once 
the  absence  of  the  2d  sand  in  that  locality,  and  especially 
so,  when  he  found  the  other  two  sands  below  corresponding 
so  nearly  in  relative  position  and  character  to  the  Stray  and 
3d  on  Oil  creek. 

In  the  Ttdioute  section  also,  the  central  position  of  the 
two  sands  found  between  the  1st  SS.  and  3d  SS.  should  have 
indicated  to  him  that  they  both  belonged  to  the  horizon  of  the 
2d  sand,  and  not  partly  to  the  2d  and  partly  to  the  3d,  as 
the  application  of  the  term  "Stray"  to  the  lower  member 
would  imply. 

The  Plcasantoille  record  is  one  selected  to  represent  both 
the  Ploasantville  and  Pithole  districts,  because  it  agrees 
with  the  general  structure  as  given  in  the  first  well  drilled 
at  Pithole,  in  180,"),  (Frazer  well ;  II,  No.  885,)  and  to  show 
the  manner  in  which  the  name  "4th  sand"  originated; 
which  narno  thenceforth  became  a  common  term  for  this 
stratum,  (really  the  representative  of  the  Oil  creek  stray) 
throughout  all  this  region.  There  is  no  doubt,  however, 


182  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

that  a  split  or  duplicated  second  sand  was  found  in  the 
Frazer  well,  but  the  drillers  only  noted  one  of  them.  The 
Pithole  district  and  south  Pleasantmlle  district  would, 
therefore,  be  represented  more  properly  by  a  section  with 
a  second  sand  similar  to  Tidioute.  This  order  of  the  rocks 
is  given  in  many  of  the  records  of  these  localities,  and  then 
the  first  sand  is  correctly  numbered,  the  two  members  of 
2d  SS.  are  called  respectively  2d  and  3d,  and  thus  the  stray 
becomes  the  4th  SS.,  as  in  the  section  shown  in  the  plate. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  represent  on  a  single  plate, 
such  as  the  one  given  on  p.  178  above,  all  the  variations  in 
numbers  and  positions  of  sandrocks,  made  by  the  drillers, 
and  it  would  only  complicate  matters  if  we  attempted  to 
do  so.  It  is  quite  sufficient  to  show  that  the  oil  rocks  can 
be  traced  as  an  independent  group  from  one  end  of  the  oil 
belt  to  the  other,  and  that  if  the  original  classification  of 
the  three  sands  had  been  adhered  to  as  closely  as  possible, 
and  confined  strictly  within  the  range  of  this  group,  oper- 
ators as  a  class  would  have  had  much  clearer  views  of  the 
structure  of  the  oil  regions,  and  been  able  to  work  much 
more  understandingly  than  they  have  done. 

Measurements  of  Wells  by  the  Survey. 

§  385.  After  two  years  of  fruitless  effort  in  attempting  to 
convince  the  driller  that  the  whole  of  the  oil  group  should 
be  carefully  watched  and  measured  as  well  as  the  oil-pro- 
ducing sand,  and  finding  it  impossible  to  secure  such  records 
from  him  as  were  needed  for  geological  study,  the  employ- 
ment of  a  special  assistant  was  authorized,  whose  sole  duty 
should  be  to  secure  some  carefully-kept  and  complete  well 
records  for  our  use. 

§  386.  Tlie  wells  selected  for  measurement. — In  the  fall 
of  1876,  my  nephew,  Mr.  John  H.  Carll,  commenced  this 
work.  His  first  charge,  was  six  wells  near  Petrolia,  in  But- 
ler co.  ;  his  next,  three  near  Edenburgh,  in  Clarion  co.  ;  and 
these  were  -supplemented  in  the  winter  of  1877-78  by  one 
at  Bradford,  McKean  co.,  taken  still  more  in  detail  by  Mr. 
Arthur  Hale. 

§  387.  A  full  history  of  the  drilling  of  these  wells  will 


WELL   MEASUREMENTS.  III.  183 

be  given,  in  order  that  those  unacquainted  with  the  business 
may  form  some  idea  of  what  it  is  to  put  down  an  oil  well ; 
and  the  accompanying  records,  sections  and  illustrations, 
will  also  furnish  much  material  of  interest,  we  trust,  to 
geologists. 


Methods  of  making  measurements. 

§  388.  Our  principal  measurements  in  the  wells  were  made 
with  a  steel  wire  prepared  for  the  purpose,  but  as  there  are 
several  methods  of  well  measurements  in  vogue,  it  may  be 
well  to  here  describe  them  in  order. 

§  389.  Rope  measurement  is  the  most  common  method, 
or  was- in  former  years,  if  not  at  present.  A  stick  five  feet 
long,  like  a  yard-stick,  is  made  ;  a  little  strip  say  two  inches 
long  is  then  tacked  transversely  on  one  end  of  it  and  pro- 
jects over  on  each  side  like  a  letter  T.  When  drilling  is 
suspended  and  a  measurement  is  to  be  made,  the  rope  is 
drawn  taut  by  the  bull- wheels  until  the  tools  are  known  to 
be  just  touching  the  bottom,  and  a  string  is  tied  around  the 
cable  at  well-mouth  level.  The  engine  is  now  started  slow- 
ly, and  as  the  cable  runs  up,  a  man  holding  the  measuring- 
rod  in  his  right  hand,  seizes  the  cable  with  his  left,  and 
crooking  his  thumb  at  right  angles  to  the  cable,  brings  the 
end  of  it  against  the  string.  He  then  clasps  the  cable  with 
his  right  hand,  holding  the  measuring-stick  in  the  palm 
against  the  rope  and  draws  it  down  until  the  top  projection 
rests  upon  his  thumb,  immediately  removing  his  thumb  and 
placing  it  in  a  similar  manner  on  the  cable  under  the  lower 
end  of  the  stick,  for  a  repetition  of  the  operation.  Re- 
markably accurate  measurements  can  be  made  in  this  way, 
with  proper  care,  if  the  engine  is  run  steadily  and  the 
measurer  is  careful  to  place  his  thumb  properly  and  not  let 
it  slip  during  the  changes  of  the  rod. 

§  390.  SticJc  measurement. — Another  way  is  to  take  two 
measuring  sticks,  without  the  cross-top,  and  station  two 
men  at  the  well-mouth,  where  they  alternately  hold  their 
rods  firmly  against  the  ascending  cable,  and  abut  the  upper 
end  of  one  stick  against  the  lower  end  of  the  other  before 


184  III.       REPORT  OF  PEOGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

it  is  removed.  This  is  considered  a  more  accurate  method 
than  the  first. 

§391.  Derrick  measurement. — Still  another  way,  ("the 
derrick  measurement")  is  to  measure  accurately  the  dis- 
tance from  the  well-mouth  over  the  crown-pulley  and  down 
to  the  centre  of  the  bull-wheel  shaft,  or  some  fixed  point 
near  the  bull-wheels.  This  distance  is  ordinarily  about  140 
feet.  A  string  is  tide  on  the  drilling  cable  at  well-mouth 
as  before,  and  when  this  string  has  gone  up  over  the  crown- 
pulley  and  come  down  to  the  point  at  the  bull- wheels,  the 
engine  is  stopped  and  another  string  is  tied  around  the  cable 
at  well-mouth.  By  repeating  the  operation,  counting  the 
stops  and  measuring  the  last  fractional  part  with  a  stick, 
very  good  and  rapid  measurements  can  be  made  in  this  way. 
It  is  more  convenient,  however,  and  economizes  time,  to  use 
this  method  when  letting  the  tools  in  the  well,  for  the  stops 
can  be  made  more  readily  with  the  brake  than  the  engine  ; 
but  it  is  questionable  whether  the  results  are  as  good.  In 
the  former  case  the  rope  is  firm  and  solid  from  the  steady 
weight  of  the  tools  in  drilling.  In  the  latter  it  has  been 
coiled  on  the  bull- wheel  shaft,  has  dried  somewhat,  perhaps, 
and  is  quite  likely  to  alter  more  or  less  by  stretching,  as  it 
goes  into  the  hole  with  the  weight  constantly  increasing  as 
the  tools  descend,  on  that  part  of  the  cable  where  the  meas- 
urement is  being  made. 

§  392.  The  wire  measurement  method  is  considered  the 
most  accurate,  but  even  this  may  give  unreliable  results. 

The  apparatus  generally  used  consists  of  a  coil  of  No.  16 
steel  wire  either  round  or  flat,  wound  upon  a  hand  reel 
which  can  readily  be  put  in  position  at  the  well-mouth.  The 
wire  is  marked  off  into  50  feet  divisions  which  are  noted  by 
little  buttons  of  solder  brazed  to  it,  or  by  fine  wire  or  waxed 
silk  wound  firmly  around  it.  The  flat  wire  is  sometimes 
marked  by  a 'short  twist  at  each  fifty  feet.  A  light  weight 
is  attached  to  the  end  of  it  to  carry  it  down.  These  "meas- 
uring reels"  are  made  by  different  parties  and  the  well 
owners  buy  and  use  them  with  perfect  confidence  in  their 
accuracy  ;  but  no  doubt  many  of  them  are  far  from  correct. 
In  using  them  one  is  not  sure  that  they  have  been  accurately 


WELL   MEASUREMENTS.  III.  185 

marked ;  the  wire  undoubtedly  stretches  more  or  less  when 
subjected  to  heavy  strain  in  deep  wells ;  the  marking  tags 
sometimes  slip  unnoticed  and  many  other  things  may  hap- 
pen to  vitiate  their  measurements. 

The  reel  used  for  our  work  was  prepared  with  a  great 
deal  of  care,  the  tags  were  brazed  upon  the  wire  and  plainly 
numbered  and  every  part  of  the  wire  when  measured  was 
subjected  to  a  strain  bej-ond  what  it  would  receive  in  the 
well,  in  order  that  it  might  not  afterward  bo  affected  by 
stretch.  It  was  well  taken  care  of  and  carefully  used  and 
the  results  ought  to  bo  perfectly  reliable.  Several  wells 
were  measured  with  this  wire  that  had  previously  been 
measured  by  other  wires  and  a  disagreement  was  found  of 
from  5  feet  to  10  fe3t  and  in  one  case  a3  much  as  15  feet. 

§  393.  The  w7ieel.—ln  the  fall  of  1870,  while  preparing 
for  our  well  measurements  and  planning  how  to  gain  our 
ends  with  the  least  annoyance  to  the  driller,  I  suggested 
the  construction  of  a  wheel  which  could  be  held  in  the 
hands  and  pressed  against  the  cable  as  it  ascended,  the  revo- 
lutions of  the  wheel  to  be  recorded  by  an  index,  on  the 
same  principal  as  tho  odometers  used  on  the  survey.  The 
wheel  was  made  and  works  nicely  but  was  not  completed 
in  time  to  be  of  any  service  on  these  wells. 

Afterward,  in  the  spring  of  1877  I  saw  a  similar  device, 
made  by  Mr.  J.  F.  Ramsey,  in  use  on  tho  Economy  Com- 
pany's well  No.  2  at  Beaver  Falls,  and  it  was  said  to  do  ex- 
cellent work.  This  was  a  simple  grooved  wooden  wheel  5 
feet  in  circumference,  fixed  in  a  frame  which  was  shoved 
up  to  the  well  mout  h  whenever  a.  measurement  was  required. 
A  peg  in  the  rim  rang  a  bell  at  every  revolution  and  the 
well  was  measured  at  any  time  by  running  up  the  cable  and 
counting  the  bell-strokes. 

Mr.  Ramsey  suggests  that  the  crown-pullies  for  derricks 
be  made  5  feet  in  circumference  and  then  by  running  a  wire 
down  to  a  bell  fixed  in  the  derrick  near  tho  driller  the  depth 
of  a  well  could  be  known  every  time  the  tools  were  drawn. 
This  is  a  novel  idea  but  I  have  no  doubt  the  plan  could  be 
made  to  work  well  and  it  would  suffice  for  all  "ordinary 
measurements. 


186  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

The  hand  wheel  measurer  has  recently  been  patented  I 
understand  by  some  one  in  the  State  of  New  York,  and  is 
now  being  introduced  into  the  Bradford  oil  field.  If  it  works 
satisfactorily,  (as  it  must  if  properly  constructed)  it  will  be 
welcomed  as  a  great  time  saver  and  being  so  easily  used  it 
will  give  us  much  fuller  and  more  satisfactory  records  than 
we  have  heretofore  been  able  to  obtain. 

§  394.  Difficulties  in  the  way  of  getting  a  good  record.— 
Measuring  an  oil  well,  preserving  sand-pumping  s,  and 
keeping  an  accurate  register  of  the  variations  of  strata  are 
not  such  simple  matters  as  many  suppose. 

1.  In  feeling  bottom. — The  first  few  hundred  feet  may  be 
managed  without  much  difficulty,  perhaps,  but  when  one 
third  of  a  mile  of  measuring  wire  is  to  be  let  down  into  a 
hole  and  reeled  up  again  by  hand  it  is  not  a  speedy  or  an 
easy  operation. 

At  great  depths  it  requires  a  sense  of  touch  acquired  only 
by  education  and  experience,  to  enable  one  to  tell  when  the 
bottom  is  touched  and  the  wire  taut,  particularly  when  the 
hole  is  partly  full  of  oil,  kept  in  constant  ebullition  by  es- 
caping gas.  Under  these  circumstances  it  is  sometimes 
really  impossible  to  make  a  correct  measurement  with  wire. 

2.  The  night  drilling  record. — Another  bar  to  absolute 
correctness  in  a  record  is  this.     Two  drillers  are  employed 
on  every  well — one  working  from  noon  until  midnight,  the 
other  from   midnight  until  noon.     An  emulative  feeling 
almost  always  exists  between  them, — occasionally  one  of 
them  may  from  want  of  dilligence,  or  some  other  cause,  fail 
to  make  as  much  headway  on  his  "tour"  as  the  other  has 
done,  and  to  excuse  himself  he  reports  hard  drilling — or  he 
may  have  just  struck  a  sand  before  going  off  tour  and  say 
he  has  drilled  in  it  ten  feet  when  perhaps  he  has  only  drilled 
two. 

Where  a  well  is  visited  only  once  a  day,  and  the  drill  is 
going  down  from  30  feet  to  90  feet  in  24  hours,  of  course 
many  of  the  changes  of  rock  must  be  taken  on  the  driller' 's 
word  ;  thus  from  the  causes  above  stated  (and  others  also 
might  be* mentioned,)  it  will  be  readily  perceived  that  quite 
serious  errors  in  the  thickness  of  strata  might  creep  into  a 


WELL   MEASUREMENTS. 


III.   187 


record,  in  spite  of  the  utmost  care,  for  even  if  all  the  sand- 
pumpings  are  saved  it  is  impossible  for  anyone  but  the 
drillers,  to  say  just  how  thick  the  different  divisions  should 
be. 

§  395.  Difficulties  in  measuring  a  group  of  wells  at  once. — 
It  soon  became  evident  after  Mr.  Carll  had  taken  charge  of 
the  six  wells  at  Pelrolia,  that  they  were  too  many  for  one 
man  to  attend  to  properly,  even  with  the  hearty  coopera- 
tion of  the  drillers.  He  could  visit  each  but  once  a  day  ; 
the  drilling  progressed  rapidly  at  certain  stages,  sometimes 
passing  through  several  distinct  strata  in  24  hours  ;  and 
although  a  sandpumping  from  every  change  of  rock  was 
saved  for  him,  it  often  happened  that  some  points  in  relation 
to  the  specimens  preserved  by  the  man  on  the  ' '  off  tour ' ' 
needed  explanation.  This  man  he  seldom  saw,  and  if  he 
did  chance  to  meet  him  once  or  twice  a  week,  the  details 
wanted,  which  could  have  readily  been  given  at  the  time, 
had  then  probably  escaped  his  recollection. 

§  396.  At  Ederiburg,  only  three  wells  were  taken  in  hand, 
so  that  they  might  be  visited  twice  a  day  both  drillers  be 
interviewed,  and  a  series  of  specimens  secured,  coming  in 
at  closer  intervals. 

§  397.  At  Bradford  the  most  satisfactory  plan  was 
adopted.  Here  only  one  well  was  watched,  and  arrange- 
ments were  made  for  saving  a  specimen  every  time  the  well 
was  sand- pumped. 

§  398.  The  number  of  specimens  secured  by  the  several 
methods  is  as  follows  : 

Petrolia— well  No.  1,  .   . 79  specimens  in  1631  feet. 


2,.    . 


4, 

5, 

6, 

Edenburg — well  No.  1,  .... 
"        2,  .... 
«        3,  .... 
Bradford,  .... 

§  399.  The  selection  of  the  particular  wells  secured  .for 
measurement  was  a  matter  of  compulsion  rather  than  of 
choice. 


.  51 
.  63 
.  47 
.  46 
.  42 
.  62 
.  101 
.  92 
311 


1436 
1616 
1512 
1549 
1610 
1220 
1143 
1050 
1719 


188  III.         REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Only  those  that  were  drilling  simultaneously  and  likely 
to  be  completed  about  the  same  time,  could  be  taken  charge 
of  ;  and  these  must  be  so  situated  that  they  could  be  visited 
in  order  at  least  once  a  day. 

The  well  owners  must  be  consulted  and  the  contractor 
and  drillers  consent  to  the  annoyance  and  interruption  of 
frequent  measurements,  and  the  trouble  and  delay  of  emp- 
tying the  sandpumpings  into  pails  instead  of  the  waste 
trough. 

It  was  desirable  also  to  have  the  wells  located  at  equal 
distances  apart,  and  on  a  line,  as  nearly  as  possible,  trans- 
verse to  the  average  trend  of  the  oil  belt — so  that  the  struc- 
tural differences  of  stratification  might  be  clearly  brought 
out. 

§  400.  Kindness  of  the  drillers  and  owners. — Consider- 
ing all  these  circumstances  the  locations  of  the  wells  were 
remarkably  favorable ;  and  our  acknowledgments  are  due 
to  the  well- owners,  contractors  and  drillers  who  so  court- 
eously assisted  in  forwarding  our  designs — for  without  their 
consent  and  cordial  cooperation  nothing  could  have  been 
done. 

When  it  is  remembered  that  from  the  time  the  tools  are 
swung  up  in  the  derrick  until  the  completion  of  a  well,  if 
no  accident  occurs,  there  is  no  cessation  to  the  work  of  drill- 
ing, night  or  day — no  time  when  the  well  shaft  is  not  occu- 
pied either  by  the  drill  or  the  sandpump,  for  the  moment 
one  is  withdrawn  the  other  is  inserted — the  considerable  in- 
convenience and  loss  of  time  they  thus  voluntarily  sub- 
jected themselves  to  in  behalf  of  the  furtherance  of  scien- 
tific inquiry  will  be  understood  and  appreciated.  Their 
names  will  be  found  in  connection  with  the  records  to  be 
given  further  on. 


CHAPTER  XX. 
Six  wells  near  Petrolia,  accurately  measured. 

(Illustrated  by  plates  XII and  XVII.) 

§  401.  The  geographical  positions  of  the  six  wells  near 
Petrolia,  in  Butler  county,  measured  by  us  with  particular 
care,  in  1876,  and  sand-pumpings  preserved  for  the  State 
museum,  are  designated  by  dots  in  circles  upon  the  small 
map  on  page  191. 

No.  1— Represents  Sutton  Well,  No.  4. 

No.  2  "  Dougherty  Well,  No.  2. 

No.  3  "  Evans  Well,  No.  21. 

No.  4  "  Hazel  wood  Well,  No.  21. 

-No.  5  "  Morehead  &  Lardin  Well,  No.  2. 

No.  6  "  '          Kern  Well,  No.  6. 

The  distance  in  a  direct  line  from  No.  1  to  No.  6  is  not 
quite  three  miles  and  a  half — in  a  direction  about  N.  75°  E. 

§  402.  Production. — The  area  of  this  little  sketch  map 
covers  one  of  the  most  productive  portions  of  Butler 
county. 

The  "Third  Sand  Oil  belt"  passes  across  the  map  from 
Petrolia  to  Karns  City;  and  the  "Fourth  Sand  Oil  belt" 
crosses  the  "Third"  between  the  two  towns,  and  runs  in 
nearly  an  east  and  west  course. 

§  403.  Oil  bearing  sands. — Many  of  the  wells  here  pro- 
duced largely,  both  from  the  Third  and  Fourth  sands ; 
and  when  the  Fourth  sand  was  first  tapped,  1500  to  2500 
barrels  per  day  was  not  regarded  as  an  exaggerated  esti- 
mate of  the  flow  of  some  of  the  largest  wells. 

Such  exhaustive  drainage  through  a  large  number  of 
wells  could  have  but  one  result.  Both  sands  had  been 
greatly  depleted  of  oil,  before  the  six  wells  here  referred 
to  were  drilled,  and  consequently  none  of  them  turned  out 
to  be  large  producers ;  as  some  of  them  undoubtedly  would 

( 189  III. ) 


190  III.   EEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

have  been  if  drilled  earlier.  Their  records,  however,  show 
the  geological  structure  of  the  district  just  as  well  as  if  the 
bulk  of  the  oil  had  not  been  previously  abstracted  from  the 
sands. 

As  it  is  desirable  to  have  all  the  facts  in  relation  to  these 
wells  in  the  same  volume  with  those  of  the  three  wells  in 
Clarion  county,  and  the  one  in  McKean  county,  all  four  of 
which  were  watched  and  measured  in  the  same  manner,  we 
here  reproduce  their  records,  *  adding  to  them  the  specimen 
numbers ;  so  that  they  may  serve  as  catalogues,  if  any 
reader  of  this  volume  should  desire  to  examine  any  of  the 
ten  suites. 

§  404.  Tlie  .nomenclature  of  tlie  locality. — In  the  follow- 
ing records  it  will  be  noticed  that  we  quote  such  terms  as 
'  *  Mountain  Sand, "  "  Second  Sand, "  "50  foot  Rock, ' '  &c. 
They  are  not  our  names,  but  those  that  were  applied  to  the 
strata  by  the  drillers  at  the  several  \vells.  As  these  names 
are  so  frequently  heard  in  connection  with  the  wells  of 
Butler  county,  it  may  be  profitable  to  put  them  on  record 
here,  to  show  the  reader  where  they  belong,  and  what  they 
represent.  I  have  already  made  it  sufficiently  plain  in  pre- 
ceding chapters  of  this  report  that  the  Butler  county  "Sec- 
ond Sand"  is  really  the  First  Sand  of  the  oil  group.  This 
kept  in  mind,  there  need  be  no  difficulty  in  comparing  our 
records  with  those  of  wells  in  Clarion  county,  and  other 
places,  where  the  term  First  Sand  is  properly  applied  to 
the  top  member  of  the  Venango  Oil  group. 

§  405.  These  records  also  furnish  a  description  of  the 
rocks  shown  in  the  six  geological  sections  on  Plate  XII.  f 

§  406.  TJi-e  specimens. — In  examining  the  specimens, 
hereafter,  in  the  museum,  it  must  be  remembered  that  while 
the  numbers  given  in  the  following  records  stand  for  their 

•   *  From  Report  I.I. 

f  The  sections  and  the  records  taken  together,  will  be  of  interest  to  any  one 
who  may  be  inclined  to  study  the  structure  of  sedimentary  rocks  in  detail. 
They  show  how  variable  such  deposits  are  even  within  very  restricted  geo- 
graphical limits,  and  suggest  the  necessity  of  exercising  the  greatest  caution 
whenever  we  attempt  to  trace  any  particular  stratum  over  large  areas.  The 
red  rocks  alone  in  these  sections  afford  an  instructive  study.  In  the  most 
westerly  one  not  a  trace  of  red  was  found. 


Plate  XXXII. 


III.  191 


192  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

special  specimens,  yet  the  records  arc  Intended  to  indicate 
the  quality  of  tlie  strata  as  shown  l>y  all  tJie  facts  obtained 
at  the  loells  while  they  were  being  drilled,  and  consequently 
they  may  not  always  give  &  precise  description  of  the  par- 
ticular specimen  referred  to. 

§  407.  Records  written  out  from  an  examination  of  speci- 
mens have  been  productive  of  an  abundance  of  error,  when 
unaccompanied  by  explanatory  notes.  Specimens  do  not 
always  correctly  represent  the  character  of  the  rocks  drilled 
through.  A  great  deal  depends  upon  the  manner  of  wash- 
ing and  drying  them.  A  series  of  -sand- shells  and  argilla- 
ceous shale  may  be  so  ground  up  together  by  the  drill  that 
a  thorough  washing  will  leave  nothing  but  sand.  Fre- 
quently all  traces  of  the  soft  red  shales  are  thus  entirely 
lost. 

A  small  percentage  of  pebbles  in  an  argillaceous  or  slaty 
matrix,  may  be  washed  and  manipulated  so  as  to  present  a 
very  good  pebble  specimen. 

A  muddy  sand  may  be  washed  so  that  it  can  scarcely  be 
distinguished  from  a  pure  sand. 

The  natural  color  of  a  specimen  may  be  entirely  changed 
by  oxydation  of  the  small  particles  of  metal  worn  from  the 
tools,  especially  if  the  hole  contains  salt  water  and  the 
material  is  not  quickly  dried. 

Careless  sand-pumping  while  in  a  hard  sand  may  leave 
the  bottom  of  the  hole  full  of  drillings  to  be  ground  over 
and  over,  and  they  then  come  up  as  tine  as  flour,  and  ap- 
pear more  like  clay  than  sand. 

Specimens  also  change  very  perceptibly  in  color  by  age, 
some  bleaching  in  the  light,  others  growing  darker. 

§  408.  A  well-record  should  be  made  at  the  well,  and  no- 
where else.  There  a  person  can  see  the  sand-pumpings  as 
they  come  up  ;  examine  the  tools,  which  show  unmistaka- 
bly the  character  of  the  rock  they  have  been  working  upon, 
by  being  either  sharp  or  dull,  scratched  or  polished ;  and 
converse  with  the  drillers,  who  alone  can  tell  at  what  point 
a  change  of  rock  occurs. 

A  record  thus  made  should  never  be  altered,  even  if  the 


SIX  WELLS  NEAR  PETROLIA.  III.  193 

descriptions  given  do  not  always  exactly  fit  the  specimens 
preserved. 

§  409.  How  specimens  should  be  collected. — When  a  well 
cannot  be  visited  by  the  person  who  wishes  to  study  its 
record,  a  duplicate  set  of  sand-pumpings  should  be  kept 
by  the  drillers.  It  can  easily  be  done  in  this  way : 

Dump  the  sand-pump  into  a  pail;  let  the  sediment 
settle ;  pour  off  the  top ;  take  a  handful  of  the  sediment 
and  dry  it  immediately  ;  then  wash  out  an  equal  quantity 
and  dry  that.  Put  them  in  small  paper  bags  and  mark 
plainly  the  depth  from  which  they  came,  and  the  thickness 
of  rock  they  represent. 

It  is  also  a  good  plan  to  put  on  the  date. 

From  specimens  thus  kept  a  very  satisfactory  study  of 
the  character  of  the  measures  drilled  through  could  be 
made  at  any  time. 


13  III. 


194  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 


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WELL  KECORD.  III.  209 

Notes  to  the  preceding  Table  in  §  4.10. 

Column  No.  1. 

Sutton  well,  No.  4.     Owners,  H.  L.  Taylor  &  Co.  Con- 
tractor, William  Fee.     Drillers  changed  several  times. 
Fifty-five  feet  deep  when  taken  charge  of,  Oct.  23,  1876. 

*  From  Dec.  29  to  Jan.  4  shut  down  a  large  portion  of 
the  time  on  account  of  gas,  the  well  flowing  several  times 
a  day. 

Actual  drilling  time  about  64  days.     Average  25£  ft.  per 
day.     Best  24  hours'  work  72  ft. 
Specimens  collected  from  9.00  to  11.30,  A.  M. 

Column  No.  2. 

Dougherty  well,  No.  2,  McCleary  farm.  Owners,  Dough- 
erty &  Devlin.  Contractor,  Seth  Andrews.  Drillers,  Setli 
Andrews  and  A.  Wolf. 

Seventy  feet  deep  when  taken  charge  of  Oct.  12,  1876. 

*  Drilling  water  well  deeper,  it  having  been  drained  into 
the  main  hole. 

f  Pulled  casing  on  account  of  salt  water  below.  Reamed 
down  from  476'  to  610,  and  re-cased  Oct.  14. 

Actual  drilling  time  about  39  days.  Average  36.8'  per 
day.  Best  24  hours'  work,  90'. 

Specimens  collected  from  7.30  to  9.30,  A.  M. 

Column  JVo.  3. 

Evans  well,  No.  21,  Dougherty  farm.  Owners,  Evans 
&  Co.  John  Layton  and  Laird  Maclan,  drillers,  and  Sam 
Maclan,  tool  dresser,  all  owning  interests  in  the  well. 

140'  deep  when  taken  charge  of  Oct.  19,  1876. 

*  Straightening  up  crooked  hole. 

fFrom  this  point  down,  drilling  was  only  done  by  day- 
light on  account  of  danger  from  gas. 

Actual  drilling  time  47  days.  Average  34.4'  per  day. 
Best  24  hours'  work  80' 

Specimens  collected  from  9.30,  A.  M.,  to  12.30,  p.  M. 

Column  No.  4- 

Hazelwood  well,  No.  21,  H.  P.  Shakely  farm.     Owners, 
14  III. 


210  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Hazelwood  Oil  Co.    Contractor,  D.  Washabaugh.     Drillers 
changed  several  times. 

73'  deep  when  taken  charge  of  Oct,  13,  1876. 

*  Straightening  flat  hole. 

Actual  drilling  time  42  days.  Average  36'  per  day.  Best 
24  hours'  work  77'. 

Specimens  collected  from  2.30  to  8.30,  p.  M. 

Column  No.  5. 

Morehead  &  Lardin  well,  No.  2.  Mortimer  farm.  Own- 
ers, Morehead,  Lardin  &  Co.  S.  Kaufman,  driller,  and  J. 
W.  Kaufman  and  Thompson  Frazier,  tool  dressers,  all  own- 
ing interests  in  the  well. 

80'  deep  when  taken  charge  of  Nov.  10,  1876. 

*  Pulled  casing,  reamed  down  from  541',  and  re-inserted 
casing  at  562. 

f  Moving  boiler  on  account  of  gas. 

Actual  drilling  time  about  34  days.     Average  45.6'  per 
day.     Best  24  hours'  work,  90'. 
Specimens  collected  from  2.00  to  9.00,  p.  M. 

Column  No.  6. 

Kern  well,  No.  6.  W.  Snow  farm.  Owners,  H.  L.  Taylor  & 
Co.  Contractors,  Grace  &  Criswell.  Drillers,  John  McClure 
and  Fred  Thatcher. 

202'  deep  when  taken  charge  of,  Oct.  12,  1876. 

*  Straightening  flat  hole 

Actual  drilling  time  44  days.     Average  36.6'  per  day. 
Best  24  hours'  work,  60'. 
Specimens  collected  from  1.45  to  5.00,  P.  M. 

§  411.  Rate  of  drilling  shown  by  Plate  XVII.—  The 
variable  composition  of  the  measures  through  which  oil 
wells  are  sunk,  is  graphically  illustrated  on  Plate  XVII, 
where  may  be  seen  sections  of  the  six  Petrolia  wells  drawn 
in  diamonds,  each  diamond  representing  on  an  uniform 
scale  the  number  of  feet  drilled  in  twenty-four  hours. 

If  the  quality  of  rock  is  the  same  in  one  well  as  that  in 
another,  we  should  expect  to  find  but  little  difference  in 
.their  average  daily  rate  of  drilling,  where  similar  methods 


SPECIMEN  RACK.  III.  211 

are  employed  and  equal  skill  is  exercised.  Irregularity  in 
the  rate  of  drilling  may  therefore  be  presumed  to  indicate 
variability  in  the  rocks  pierced.  Thus,  then,  by  a  compar- 
ison of  these  time  sections  with  the  geological  sections,  we 
may  get  a  very  good  idea  of  where  the  hard  and  the  soft 
rocks  lie,  and  note  how  they  appear  to  change  in  character 
in  passing  from  one  well  to  another. 

Fig.  1  shows  the  time  occupied  in  boring  from  the  Fer- 
riferous limestone  to  the  First  oil  sand. 

Fig.  2,  the  time  spent  in  drilling  through  the  oil  group. 

The  diary  and  notes  should  be  consulted  to  explain  why 
some  of  the  diamonds  are  so  small  in  the  oil  sands  and  in 
one  or  two  other  instances. 

§  412.  Rapid  drilling  in  soft  rocks. — The  rapid  advances 
made  in  drilling  between  the  mountain  sands  and  the  oil 
group,  confirm  what  has  already  been  said  about  the  band 
of  soft  shale  universally  found  at  this  horizon  along  the  oil 
belt. 

§  413.  Tlie  specimen  time  rack. — These  shales  also  give 
rise  to  a  very  conspicuous  feature  in  the  photograph  of  the 
rack  of  specimens  shown  in  Plate  XXXIII,  on  page  213,  as 
will  be  more  fully  appreciated  after  a  description  of  the 
rack  has  been  given. 

TJie  rack  is  formed  of  six  separate  strips  of  deal  three 
inches  wide  and  six  or  seven  feet  long.  A  iXf  inch  cleat 
is  tacked  edgewise  along  the  lower  side  to  form  a  ledge  or 
shelf  for  the  specimen  bottles  to  rest  upon. 

Tlie  strips  are  laid  on  sloping  brackets  secured  to  the 
walls — the  slope  being  at  an  angle  of  about  45°,  and  having 
steps  cut  into  it  corresponding  to  the  width  of  the  strips, 
so  that  the  strips  keep  position  by  their  own  weight,  and 
may  readily  be  moved,  independently,  either  to  the  right 
or  to  the  left,  by  the  knobs  seen  near  the  center. 

The  specimens  are  enclosed  in  square  bottles  containing 
half  an  ounce  each,  and  are  labeled  with  number,  depth, 
&c. 

The  bottles  are  put  in  proper  position  on  the  strips  by 
scale,  six  inches  on  the  strip  representing  100  feet  in  the 
well ;  and  they  are  kept  in  place  by  brads  on  each  side. 


212  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

When  the  specimens  are  mounted  in  this  way,  each  bot- 
tle should  represent  the  character  of  the  rock  up  to  the 
next  one  above  it,  and  we  thus  have  the  equivalent  of  a 
glass  tube  filled  to  scale,  with  the  advantage  of  being  able 
to  open  a  bottle  at  any  point  to  examine  its  contents,  if  re- 
quired. 

By  sliding  the  slips  or  bottle  holders,  comparisons  can 
readily  be  made  in  any  manner  desired.  As  seen  in  the 
photograph  they  are  arranged  to  the  horizon  of  the  Ferrif- 
erous limestone,  to  conform  with  the  plan  of  the  geological 
sections  on  plate  XII. 

The  bottom  strip  holds  the  material  from  well  No.  1,  and 
the  numbers  run  consecutively  upward.  The  drilling  ad- 
vanced from  left  to  right. 

The  width  of  a  bottle  on  this  scale  covers  about  fifteen 
feet  and  a  Jialf  in  the  well,  consequently  where  a  number 
of  specimens  were  taken  close  together  some  of  them  had 
to  be  left  off  of  the  rack.  To  obviate  this  objection,  the 
Clarion  county  specimens  are  arranged  on  a  scale  of  one 
foot  on  the  strips  to  100  feet  in  the  wells,  and  the  strips  are 
mounted  in  two  sections,  one  for  comparing  the  upper  part 
of  the  well,  and  the  other  the  lower.  A  bottle,  by  this 
scale,  covers  7  feet  9  inches. 

The  scale  of  the  Bradford  rack  is  one  foot  to  fifty  feet  in 
the  well.  It  is  cut  into  six  300  feet  sections,  and  contains 
311  specimens,  showing  almost  a  solid  row  of  bottles  from 
top  to  bottom. 

This  cabinet  of  sand-pumpings  from  ten  wells  is,  un- 
doubtedly, the  most  complete  of  any  in  the  State. 

As  the  specimens  from  the  Petrolia  wells  were  taken 
every  day,  whether  there  was  a  change  in  the  character  of 
the  rock  or  not,  it  follows  that  ichere  the  bottles  are  seen 
close  together  in  the  photograph  on  the  Plate,  the  rocks 
must  have  been  hard  or  changeable  in  character,  and  where 
they  are  wide  apart,  soft  and  homogeneous.  Thus,  then, 
the  soft  rocks  between  the  Mountain  sands  and  the  Oil 
group  are  plainly  indicated  even  in  this  photograph  of 
specimens. 


Ill  Chap!  XX. 


Plate  XXXIII 


Ferr.Liriie. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

TJiree  wells  near  Edenburg,  accurately  measured. 

(Illustrated  by  Plates  XII  and  XXXIV.) 

§  414.  A  second  group  of  wells,  located  near  Edenburg, 
in  Clarion  county,  was  watched  and  measured  by  John  H. 
Carll,  in  1877,  in  the  same  manner  as  those  at  Petrolia  had 
been  in  1876.  Thus  from  similarly  collected  data  obtained 
at  two  points  about  18  miles  apart,  we  have  the  means  of 
comparing  the  rocks  of  Clarion  county  with  those  of  Butler. 
It  is  to  be  regretted  that  we  must  stop  here — for  had  it  been 
possible  to  follow  up  this  method  of  investigation,  by  se- 
curing like  groups  of  wells  as  developments  advanced  to 
the  east  and  northeast  of  Edenburg,  it  would  have  aided 
more  than  all  the  imperfect  well-records  now  at  command, 
in  a  study  of  the  changes  in  geological  structure  which 
seem  to  here  come  in  and  prevent  any  great  extension  of 
the  oil  producing  rocks  towards  the  northeast. 

At  Edenburg,  three  wells  only  were  selected  for  meas- 
urement, so  that  they  might  be  visited  twice  a  day  and  un- 
dergo a  closer  inspection  than  had  been  possible  with  the 
six  at  Petrolia.  Their  relative  geographical  positions  are 
shown  on  sketch  map  Plate  XXXIV,  and  the  records  and 
diary  following,  with  the  three  geological  sections  on  Plate 
XII,  will  furnish  all  the  details  connected  with  them. 


(213  III.) 


214  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 


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III.  215 


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216  III.       REPORT  OF  PKOGEESS.       JOH2T  F.   CAELL. 


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220  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 


§  418.  A  diary  of  each  day 's  drilling,  in  a  tabular  form, 
with  notes  of  drawbacks  encountered  by  accidents,  &c. 
Edenburg  wells. 

(NOTE. — The  number  marks  the  well.  The  column  under  it  gives  its  suc- 
cessive daily  increasing  depth  in  feet.  The  columns  headed  rf.  a.  give  the 
daily  advance  of  each  well  in  feet. 


1877. 

No.  1. 

d.a. 

No.  2. 

d.a. 

No.  3. 

d.a. 

REMARKS. 

May   8. 

0 

0 

o 

0 

may   g, 
10, 

46 

77 

4<> 
Bl 

.... 

32 

66 

32 
S4 

No.  3,  breakdown  •  5  h.  lost. 

11, 
12, 

130 
F 

58 

0 
30 

0 
30 

85 
116 

19 
31 

No.  3,  cable  parted  ;  8  hours 
lost. 

14, 
15, 
16, 
17, 
13, 
19, 
Sunday, 
21 
22, 
23, 
24, 
25, 
26, 

146 

193 
235 
260 
274 
318 

'351 
380 
A  407 
B410 
427 
477 

18 

47 
42 
25 
14 
44 

33 

20 
27 

17 
50 

52 
104 
142 
175 
218 
258 

'295 
F 
F 
F 
F 
F 

22 
52 
38 
33 
43 
40 

37 

140 

189 
225 
265 
296 
325 

'355 
394 
413 
430 
452 
530 

24 
49 
36 
40 
31 
29 

30 
39 
19 
17 
22 
78 

No.  3,  broke  crank  box. 

No.    1,     "Rubber    rock;" 
tough  drilling. 

No.  2,  lost  bit  in  the  well. 

No.  3,  cased  at  430. 
No.  1,  cased  at  427. 

l\ 
29, 
30, 
31, 
June  1, 
2, 
Sunday, 

531 
616 
662 
743 
759 
804 

:,4 
85 
40 
81 
1G 
46 

F 

F 
F 
F 
F 
F 

• 

585 
640 
716 
756 
795 
.    F 

55 
66 

76 
40 
39 

No.  1,  repg.  boiler  ;  18h.  lost. 
No.  3,  dril'gout  S.  pump  bot. 
No.  2,  bit  taken  out  and  hole 

5*, 
6, 

7, 
8, 
9, 
Sunday, 

850 
895 
967 
1006 
1042 
1093 

46 

45 
72 
3ft 
86 
51 

F 

340 
372 
402 
441 
465 

45 
32 
30 
39 
24 

850 
890 
939 
981 
1003 
1014 

55 
40 
49 
42 
22 
11 

prepared  for  drill. 
No.  1,  cleaning  water  well  ; 
6  hours  lost. 
No.  1,   repairing  boiler  ;  6 
hours  lost. 

Jl, 
12, 
13, 
14, 
15, 
16 

mo 

1172 
1197 
1208 
1217 
1220 

17 
9-2 
25 
11 
9 
| 

497 
515 
533 
551 
563 
567 

32 

18 
18 
18 
12 
4 

1018 
1026 
1050 

4 
8 
24 

No.  2,  repairing  rig. 
No.  2,  cased  at  567. 

Sunday, 
18, 
19 

'585 
625 

18 
40 

No.  2,  breakdown  ;  5  h.  lost. 

20 

655 

30 

21 

713 

58 

22 

731 

18 

23, 
Sunday, 

768 

37 

25 

820 

5? 

26 

851 

31 

27. 

8H4 

33 

NOTES. 


III.  221 


28, 

899 

15 

29, 

932 

33 

30, 

972 

40 

No.  2,  breakdown  ;  4  h.  lost. 

Sunday, 

'.       '.   '. 

\   \ 

July  2, 

. 

1012 

40 

3, 

. 

1061. 

49 

4, 

1123 

62 

5, 

1129 

6 

6, 

1136 

7 

7, 

1113 

7 

Notes  to  the  preceding  Table  in  §  J+18. 
Column  No.  1. 

A.  Upper  part.    Haney  &  Bartlett's  Well  No.  4,  Haney  farm,  four  fifths  of 
a  mile  S.  65°  W.  from  Edenburg  and  a  quarter  of  a  mile  N.  20°  E.  from  Brun- 
dred  Well  No.  4. 

Elevation  of  well  mouth  above  ocean  I486'. 

This  well  and  McGrew  Bros'.  No.  4,  commenced  to  drill  on  the  same  day, 
but  after  the  former  had  been  carried  down  to  407  ft.  and  cased,  drilling  was 
suspended  on  it  to  await  a  better  price  of  oil. 

No.  1,  B,  was  then  substituted  for  it,  making  a  compound  section — 400  ft. 
belonging  properly  to  Haney  and  Bartlett  well  and  the  remainder  to  Brundred 
well  No.  4. 

B.  Lower  part.    Brundred  Well  No.  4,  Capt.  Kribb's  farm,  Beaver  city;  1 
mile  S.  55  W.  from  Edenburg. 

Benj.  Brundred  owner. 

Jas  R.  Adams,  contractor  and  tool  dresser. 

J.  A.  McQuade,  tool  dresser. 

Lee  Herron,  driller. 

R.  E.  Deyoe,  driller. 

Actual  drilling  time,  after  the  casing  was  put  in,  15  days.  Average  drilling 
53  ft.  per  day.  Best  24  hours'  work  85  ft. 

The  contractor  asserts  that  this  well  was  drilled  with  a  remarkably  small 
amount  of  fuel.  Only  800  bushels  of  coal  were  used,  while  Brundred  No.  3, 
with  the  same  "crew,."  consumed  1200  bushels  and  Brundred  No.  2,  3800 
bushels.  The  wells  were  near  together  and  did  not  vary  much  in  depth. 

A  singular  accident  happened  while  drilling,  caused  by  the  melting  of  the 
"soft  plug"  in  the  crown  sheet  of  the  boiler,  while  covered  by  two  "flush 
gauges  "  of  water.  This  must  have  been  owing  to  the  formation,  from  the  im- 
purities in  the  water,  of  a  conical  incrustation  over  the  "soft  plug,"  thus 
allowing  it  to  heat  up  and  melt. 

This  well  was  not  taken  in  charge  until  May  24,  after  the  Haney  No.  4 
stopped  drilling.  It  was  then  about  400  feet  deep.  The  precise  date  of  its  com- 
mencement could  not  be  ascertained,  but  it  was  probably  about  the  1st  of 
May,  as  the  workmen  had  been  delayed  by  several  fishing  jobs,  and  encoun- 
tered a  vertical  crevice  in  the  mountain  sand  which  the  drill  followed  for  60  or 
70  feet,  during  which  time  no  water  could  be  kept  in  the  hole,  and  conse- 
quently the  work  progressed  very  slowly. 


222  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Column  No.  2. 

Columbia  Oil  Company's  Well  No.  19,  J.  H.  Riser  farm ;  f  of  a  mile  S.  20° 
E.  from  Eden  burg. 

Columbia  Oil  Co.,  owners. 

John  McCool,  contractor. 

Mike  McCool,  driller. 

Jas.  Kearney,  driller. 

Barney  McCool,  tool  dresser. 

Phil.  Dougherty,  tool  dresser. 

Actual  drilling  time  36  days.  Average  drilling  31.8'  per  day.  Best  24  hours' 
work  66  feet. 

Column  No.  3. 

McGrew  Bros'.  Well  No.  4,  Mcllhatten  farm ;  1  mile  S.  50°  E.  from  Eden- 
burg. 

McGrew  Bros.,  owners. 

W.  G.  Southwick,  contractor  and  driller. 

D.  R.  Blair,  driller. 

John  A  Patterson,  tool  dresser. 

A.  A.  Bell,  tool  dresser. 

Actual  drilling  time  29i  days.  Average  drilling  36  ft.  per  day.  Best  24 
hours'  work  80  feet. 

§419.  Elevations  of  a  number  of  wells  near  Edenburg; 
incidentally  taken  by  J.  H.  Carll  while  running  the  levels 
for  the  three  wells  measured  by  him. 

B.  M.  on  maple,  W.  of  RR.,  between  State  street  and  Penna. 
avenue,  Edenburg,  on  authority  of  W.  H.  Smith,  Chief 
Eng.  of  E.  &  S.  RR.  =  468.74'  above  A.  V.  RR.  depot  at 

Emlenton.  =  above  ocean, 905'  -f-  468.74'  =  1373.74' 

Oak  Shade  Well  No.  2,     1464 

"  "     No.  5,     1341 

"  "     No.  6,     1335 

"  "     No.  8 1459 

«  «     No.  10, 1450 

Columbia  Oil  Co.  Well  No.    7,  J.  H.  Riser  farm, 1330 

"      "     "  No.  9,        "    "   1447 

«      "     "  No.  10,        "    "   1342 

«      "     "  No.  13,        "    "   13S1 

"      "     "  No.  14,        "    "   1330 

"       "     "  No.  18,        "    "   1358 

«      «     «  No.  19,        "    "   1443 

McGrew  Bros.  Well  No.  1,  Mcllhatten  farm, 1347 

"      "  No.  2,     »     "   1316 

«      ".  No.  3,     "     "   1345 

"      "  No.  4,     "     "   1316 

Brundred  Well  No.  4,  Capt.  Kribb's  farm, 1480 

Haney  "     NO.  4,  Bower's  farm, 1486 

Base  of  Ferrif.  limestone  near  Columbia  Well  No.  19,  ....  1445 
"  "  "  "      church  in  Edenburg, 1429 


Plate  XXXIV. 


HI.  223 


/Sketch  map  shelving  the  geographical  positions 

of  the  three  wells  measured  by  JohnH.Ctnrll 

near  Edenbwg  in  Clarion  Cfounty. 

Scale  4OOOfeet*lInch. 


TRIANGLE 


^BEAVER 


CITY 

Brundred 
•JW4. 


Columbia  ( 
Oil* C9  IX 
JW19.     I 

P~ 


EOENBURC 


224  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHX  F.   CARLL. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 
One  well  near  Bradford,  accurately  measured. 

(Illustrated  by  Plate  XII.) 

§  420.  For  the  following,  record  and  catalogue  of  speci- 
mens we  are  indebted  to  the  courtesy  of  Messrs.  C.  W. 
Dennis  &  Co.,  and  their  drillers,  who  kindly  consented 
to  subject  themselves  to  the  annoyances  attending  frequent 
measurements  and  the  preservation  of  sand  pumpings,  in 
order  that  the  Survey  might  obtain  a  complete  register  of 
the  rocks  drilled  through  in  the  Bradford  oil  district. 

Dennis  well  No.  1,  is  located  on  a  high  and  narrow  ridge 
between  the  east  and  west  branches  of  Tunangwant  creek, 
about  three  quarters  of  a  mile  in  a  southwesterly  direction 
from  Bradford,  in  McKean  county. 

§  421.  The  Olean  conglomerate  caps  the  crest  a  short  dis- 
tance south  of  the  well,  its  base  being  only  115  feet  above 
the  well  mouth.  This  record,  therefore,  furnishes  a  section 
showing  nearly  all  the  strata  lying  between  the  Conglomer- 
ate series  and  the  Bradford  oil  sand. 

§  422.  To  insure  an  authentic  history  of  the  well  for  the 
Survey,  Mr.  Arthur  Hale  was  detailed  to  supervise  it  while 
drilling.  From  the  time  the  tools  were  swung  in  the  der- 
rick until  the  last  sand-pumping  came  up,  he  devoted  his 
whole  attention  to  it ;  and  probably  no  well  record  was 
ever  kept  with  greater  care  or  more  in  detail  than  this  one. 
A  portion  of  nearly  every  sand-pumping  was  preserved, 
and  the  suite  of  specimens  when  bottled  and  arranged  to  a 
scale  of  5^  as  described  in  Chapt.  XX,  gives  a  fine  exhibtion 
of  the  character  of  the  measures  drilled  through. 


DENNIS  OIL  WELL.  III.  225 

§  423.  The  distance  from  Dennis  Well  No.  1  to  the  Clar- 
ion wells  described  in  the  last  chapter,  is  about  65  miles,  in 
a  direction  south  48°  west.  It  cannot  be  expected,  there- 
fore, that  any  very  satisfactory  comparison  of  the  section 
of  this  well,  as  seen  on  Plate  XII,  can  be  made  with  the 
others  there  shown.  A  number  of  reliable  sections  are 
needed  at  intermediate  points,  before  the  horizon  of  the 
Venango  oil  group  can  be  positively  fixed  at  Bradford,  or 
the  place  of  the  Bradford  oil  sand  be  satisfactorily  deter- 
mined in  Clarion  county.  From  the  imperfect  records  of 
wells  scattered  along  this  interval,  it  is  evident  that  import- 
ant changes  of  structure  occur,  particularly  in  the  rocks 
belonging  to  the  Venango  group  and  the  mass  above  it, 
provisionally  called,  in  this  report,  the  Crawford  shales. 
We  are  not  able  to  recognize  any  one  of  the  oil  sands  of 
Venango  in  the  Dennis  well,  neither  can  we  yet  trace  the 
red  rocks  seen  in  the  section  and  exposed  on  many  of  the 
hillsides  of  McKean  county,  to  a  direct  coalescence  with 
the  red  bands  in  the  oil  wells  of  Warren,  Venango,  or 
Clarion. 

§  424.  As  Mr.  Asliburnef 's  Reports  on  McKean  and 
Forest  counties  will  contain  all  the  information  obtained 
on  these  subjects,  no  attempt  is  here  made  to  identify  the 
Bradford  rocks  with  those  of  Clarion  ;  and  the  Dennis  well 
record  and  section  are  only  published  in  this  volume  for 
the  purpose  of  grouping  together  all  the  facts  in  relation 
to  these  ten  measured  wells,  so  that  they  may  be  convenient 
for  reference  hereafter. 


15  III. 


226  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 


II  II  II  INI  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  I-!  II  II  II  II 

-2^SS^S2|§|||fe2||g|2i 


WELL  RECORD. 


III.  227 


o 

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| 
II  II  II  II  II  il  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  II  I!  II  II  II  II  II  >> 

.......  ...**. ^.  .  .  .  .    '£ 

....  ......        Ml 

B 

-5 

:::::::::  :  :::::::::::::::  :  ::::::::  § 
:::::::::  :  :::::::::::::::;  ::::::::  I 

•  •    ilbi 

:!:::::::i:::::::::::::::l::::::!:f 

if  ;•••;  :•!•;!  ••\----m^il :;;;:;?:  | 

•" ? £ S     ?   '      * 

:j :::::::  I  : : : :  :| :::::::::  a  : : : : :  :| :  a 
I:::::::!  ::::  :| :::::::::!  : : : : :  :| :  It 
:f|  ::;•;  :A, ::::,::::::::  :J.  ::::::*:  1| 

•ts  1   •  •  -5"  •  •eoco •§ ^S -^  w 

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Ilil;i^^!^i:-r1  ;l^^l 

•  6p2  *•*  '  &>s  '  'S  •  •  -  •  -^  •  •  •  •    ^  •  a  •73-H<    IE.*''.!    i  « 

'  .S   °°  —  ffl"     '  73  «      '     '  ^      '  '     '  "g     '  '     '  irj         ^'^5  S  S     '  *° 

ilmll'!  I  il i 4 1 i :fl  ;!s-::;:  is 

1|||«9^|  V&:&  V-s  ;-  >'*ii:^llli|l?  ;S  •   §s 

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P--i^ilr-^'iViiiiiii^*iiIiiiia-i  °s~ 

JBOOMSaQS-CMaQGCM'DOScOOM^SSMWXwSoDScCQCiKSSSKKQQS        jf».9 


228  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

§  426.  A  diary  of  eacli  day1  s  drilling,  in  a  tabular  form, 
witJi  notes  of  the  drawbacks  encountered  by  accident,  &c. 
Dennis  Well: 

Daily 
1877.  advance.  Depth, 

Nov.  29,  Conductor,  21  ft.  previously  set, 12  to     33 

30,  Thawing  supply  pipes, —         — 

Dec.     1,  Pulling  tubing  from  water  well, —          — 

Sunday, —         — 

3, 34  to     67 

4, 48  to   115 

5, 60  to    175 

6, '. 35  to   210 

7, .  50to   260 

8,  Engine  gives  out,       31  to   291 

Sunday, 50  to   341 

10,  . 49  to   390 

11, 45  to   435 

12,  Putting  in  casing, 10  to  445 

13, 101  to  546 

14, 86  to  632 

15, 66  to  698 

Sunday, _  _ 

17, 72  to  770 

18, 68  to  838 

19, 81  to  919 

20, 34  to  953 

21, 34  to  987 

22, 34  to  1021 

Sunday, 

24,  Broke  jars  and  lost  tools  at  1056', 35  to  1056 

Christmas, —  

26,  Fishing, _  _ 

27,  Fishing,     _  _ 

28,  Fishing,  got  tools  out,  minus  bit, _  _ 

29,  Fishing, _  _ 

Sunday, _  _ 

31,  Fishing, _        _ 

1878. 

Jaa.     1 ,  Fishing,  pin  broke  above  jars, —        — 

2,  Fishing,      _ 

3,  Cleared  the  hole, 7  to  1063 

4,  7  to  1070 

5, 15  to  1085 

Sunday, _   _ 

7,  15  to  1100 

8,  16  to  1116 

9, 9  to  1125 

10,  . 19  to  1144 

11, 31  to  1175 

12, .  39  to  1214 


WELL  KECOKD.  III.  229 

Sunday, _       _ 

14, 40  to  1254 

15, 33  to  1287 

16, 30  to  1317 

17, 29  to  1346 

18, 55  to  1401 

19 49  to  1450 

Sunday, —       — 

21, 27  to  1477 

22, 38  to  1515 

23, .   .    35  to  1550 

24 ,  Bull  wheel  broke  down, 12  to  1562 

25, 21  to  1583 

26 ,  Cable  parted,  9.30,  P.  M.,  tools  and  1400'  rope  in  hole,  62  to  1645 

Sunday,         —        — 

28,  Fishing, —        — 

29, 17  to  1662 

30,  Struck  the  oil  sand  at  1664', 9  to  1671 

31, 14  to  1685 

Feb.     1, 14  to  1699 

2, 20  to  1719 

Total  time  of  drilling  about  47  days.    Average  progress,  about  36^  ft.  per 

day.    Sixty-six  days  from  time  drilling  began  to  completion  of  well.    Best  24 

hours'  work,  101  feet. 
Contractors,  O.  P.  Boggs  and  L.  B.  Andrews.    Drillers,  Lester  B.  Andrews 

and  J.  W.  Boggs.    Tool  dressers,  H.  W.  Thomas  and  C.  M.  Andrews. 


230  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Structure  of  the  Venango  Oil  Sands.     • 

§  427.  In  investigating  any  branch  of  physical  science, 
as  in  all  other  logical  processes  of  the  human  mind,  true 
deductions  depend  upon  and  can  only  be  drawn  from  cor- 
rect premises.  The  operations  of  many  natural  laws  are 
so  patent,  and  the  results  produced  so  plain,  that  there  is 
no  difficulty  in  following  the  chain  of  events  up  from  cause 
to  effect,  or  down  from  effect  to  cause.  But  there  are  other 
more  mysterious  and  occult  agencies,  which  have  been  and 
still  are  at  work,  and  the  effects  of  which  we  see,  that  are 
not  so  readily  understood  or  explained.  The  mountains 
rise  above  us,  but  who  can  write  an  indisputable  history  of 
the  precise  manner  of  their  construction  ?  the  oil  sands 
spread  out  beneath  our  feet,  who  can  go  down  into  the  dark 
places  of  the  deep,  or  back  into  the  unknown  ages  of  the 
abysmal  past,  and  gather  the  facts  for  a  special  and  detailed 
account  of  their  deposition  which  shall  carry  the  convic- 
tion of  truthfulness  to  all  who  may  read  it  ? 

In  all  subjects  of  this  kind,  where  positive  proofs  cannot 
be  readily  adduced  to  sustain  every  position  assumed,  there 
is  always  room  for  great  diversity  of  opinion — for  vague 
theories,  bold  hypotheses,  bald  assertions  and  all  kinds  of 
crude  speculations.  Still,  there  may  usually  be  found  a 
common  sense  way  of  arriving  at  a  reasonable  solution  of 
these  mathematically  undemonstrable  problems,  by  ap-' 
pealing  to  analogies  in  nature,  where  cause  and  effect  are 
open  to  investigation  and  the  conclusions  reached  by  a  study 
of  them  cannot  be  gainsayed. 

The  manner  in  which  the  oil  sands  were  deposited  is  one 
of  these  measurably  uncertain  problems,  and  one  to  which 
may  be  obtained  a  very  erroneous  solution,  unless  the 
premises  upon  which  the  deductions  are  based  be  previously 
well  established. 


VENANGO  OIL  SANDS.  III.  231 

§  428.  Many  strange  and  fanciful  theories  have  been 
advanced  to  account  for  the  presence  of  the  oil  sands  in  the 
positions  where  they  are  found.  They  have  been  supposed 
by  some  to  have  been  ejected  through  a  portion  of  the  super- 
strata by  subterranean  forces  operating  beneath  them.  They 
have  been  described — and  by  reputable  geologists,  too — on 
the  one  hand  as  fractured  anticlinal  arches,  on  the  other  as 
synclinal  troughs,  traversed  by  fissures  and  crevices  con- 
taining salt  water,  oil  and  gas.  They  have  been  pictured 
as  long  sand-cores  cast  in  grooves  a  few  yards  wide  and 
running  as  straight  as  an  arrow  for  miles — as  if  some 
huge  grooving-machine  had  passed  over  the  bed  rocks  of 
shale  in  a  northeast  southwest  direction,  making  an  uniform 
furrow  a  few  rods  wide  and  30  feet  or  more  in  depth  in  the 
center,  which  was  in  some  unaccountable  manner  filled  in 
at  a  latter  day  with  coarse  sand  and  gravel. 

We  shall  not  stop  to  attempt  to  refute  these  baseless 
theories  and  speculations,  for  they  are  shown  to  be  unten- 
able by  the  many  facts  givendn  other  parts  of  this  report, 
but  proceed  at  once  to  a  consideration  of  the  question 
involved  in  a  study  of  the  physical  structure  of  the  oil 
sands. 

§  429.  These  questions  are,  (1)  what  dynamical  agents 
were  employed  in  the  construction  or  building  up  of  these 
rocks  ?  (2)  what  was  the  character  of  the  materials  used  in 
the  formative  processes  ?  and  (3),  with  such  forces  and  such 
materials,  what  would  be  the  probable  structure  of  the  rocks, 
judging  from  what  we  see  under  analogous  circumstances 
at  the  present  time  t 

Fortunately  we  are  not  driven  into  a  discussion  at  the 
outset,  to  prove  in  which  grand  division  of  the  consecutive 
series  of  formations  composing  the  earth  crust  the  oil  rocks 
are  found.  Lying  as  they  do  at  the  top  of  the  Devonian 
system,  or,  perhaps,  more  properly  speaking,  in  the  transi- 
tion measures  deposited  while  the  Devonian  was  merging 
into  the  Carboniferous,  their  sedimentary  origin  cannot  be 
disputed.  The  question  thus  narrows  down  at  once  to  a 
consideration  of  those  forces  alone  which  have  been  energeti- 


232  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

cally  engaged  in  the  past,  and  are  still  employed  in  the  de- 
position and  building  up  of  this  class  of  rocks. 

§  430.  Sedimentary  rocks  are  defined  by  Lyell,  as  those 
which  "are  formed  from  materials  thrown  down  from  a 
state  of  suspension  or  solution  in  water." 

This  definition,  at  first  sight,  seems  hardly  broad  enough 
to  cover  the  ponderous  mechanical  sediments  of  conglom- 
erate and  sandstone  composing  the  oil  sands.  But  a  second 
thought  will  vindicate  its  correctness,  for  even  the  largest 
pebble  of  the  conglomerate  must  have  been,  temporarily  at 
least,  held  in  suspension  by  the  energy  of  the  transporting 
current  as  it  was  swept  along  rolling  or  ricochetting  near  the 
bottom. 

Sea-beaches  of  sand  and  gravel  which  were  thrown  up 
along  shore  by  waves  and  winds,  high  above  ordinary  tide 
•level,  belong  also  as  truly  to  the  sedimentary  series  when 
sunken  and  covered  with  other  stratified  deposits  as  do  the 
accumulations  of  finer  materials  at  a  distance  from  the 
shore— which  have  been  in  a  more  literal  sense,  "held  in  a 
state  of  suspension  in  water." 

§  431.  If  then  the  oil  sands  are  of  sedimentary  origin, 
it  therefore  follows  that  they  could  only  have  been  laid  down 
in  oceans,  lakes,  or  rivers,  beneath  the  water  level,  or  at  or 
near  its  surface. 

The  forces  employed  in  their  construction  could  only 
have  been  those  prevailing  through  aqueous  conditions,  and 
they  are  the  same,  and  no  others,  that  are  possessed  by 
water  to-day,  to  wit :  The  buoyancy  of  the  fluid,  the  trans- 
porting capacity  of  swift  currents  and  the  tremendous 
energy  of  rolling  waves  and  dashing  breakers.  These  forces, 
in  connection  with  probable  terrene  oscillations  causing  al- 
terations in  relative  levels  of  land  and  water,  are  sufficient 
to  account  for  all  the  phenomena  discovered  in  studying 
the  structure  of  the  sedimentary  strata. 

§  432.  What  the  component  materials  of  the  oil  group 
are,  may  readily  be  ascertained  by  an  inspection  of  the  con- 
tents of  sand-pumps,  coming  up  from  thousands  of  drill- 
holes, scattered  throughout  the  oil  district,  and  by  an  ex- 
amination of  the  exposed  portion  of  the  out  cropping  oil 


VEJSTANGO  OIL  SANDS.      .  III.  233 

measures  and  the  coal  rocks  above  them,  as  seen  in  north- 
western Pennsylvania — for  both  masses  appear  to  be  gen- 
erically  the  same,  and  have  evidently  been  deposited  under 
similar  conditions. 

The  materials  vary  from  coarse  conglomerates  contain- 
ing quartz  pebbles  occasionally  two  inches  in  diameter, 
through  all  grades  of  conglomerates,  down  to  pebble -sand, 
sandstone,  sandy-shale,  slate,  and  the  most  finally  levigated 
mud  rock  or  "soapstone"  of  the  driller. 

§  433.  With  such  forces  in  action  as  are  enumerated 
above,  varying  in  energy  abnormally,  with  winds,  and  tides, 
and  storms ;  affected  by  changes  of  levels,  intensifying  their 
powers  at  one  time  in  this  place,  at  another  time  in  that, 
and  with  such  heterogeneous  materials  to  work  upon,  as  the 
resultant  strata  indicate,  we  could  only  expect  to  find  our 
oil-sands  and  their  associates,  (as  indeed  we  do  find  them,) 
a  variable  mass  of  pebble,  sand  and  shale  beds,  laid  down 
locally  with  great  irregularity  and  disorder,  within  the  areas 
most  sensibly  affected  by  these  changing  conditions. 

§  434.  Water  as  a  vehicle  of  transportation  for  substances 
of  greater  gravity  than  itself,  is  strong  or  weak  in  propor- 
tion to  the  velocity  with  which  it  moves.  It  follows,  then, 
that  the  character  of  the  sediment  laid  down  is  an  index 
of  the  strength  of  the  current  depositing  it. 

The  oil-sands  are  frequently  massive  conglomerates, 
made  up  of  the  coarsest  materials  to  be  found  in  the  for- 
mation to  which  they  belong;  the  influence  is  unavoidable, 
therefore,  that  they  owe  their  origin  to  the  action  of  the 
strongest  depositing  currents  prevailing  at  the  period  of 
their  deposition.  There  are  but  three  classes  of  currents 
that  may  be  presumed  to  possess  the  adequate  requisites 
for  the  performance  of  this  kind  of  work,  river  currents, 
deep-sea  currents  and  shore  currents.  Let  us  see  which 
one  of  these  has  left  the  recognizable  marks  of  its  paternity 
upon  the  rocks  in  question. 

Flumatile  Currents. 

§  435.  In  attempting  to  refer  these  sandy  deposits  to  flu- 
viatile  currents,  many  objections  present  themselves,  al- 


234  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

though  this  view  of  the  origin  of  their  sedimentation  is 
stoutly  maintained  by  some  experienced  and  well  informed 
oil  miners  who  claim  to  have  closely  watched  the  structure 
of  the  rock  as  interpreted  by  the  drill  and  sand-pump. 

Allowing  that  a  river  current  was  competent  to  bring  down 
sandy  material,  and  deposit  it  in  islands,  sandbars  and 
marginal  banks  along  its  borders  at  any  given  period  of  its 
history,  how  are  the  intermittent  intervals  to  be  accounted 
for,  when  line  materials,  only,  were  deposited  above  the 
sand-beds  ?  How  are  we  to  explain  the  strewing  again  and 
again  of  alternating  sand  and  mud  over  the  same  areas, 
when  the  river  beds  meantime  had  filled  up  hundreds  of 
feet  and  ample  opportunity  was  afforded  for  the  channel 
to  mark  out  a  new  bed  at  each  successive  period  ?  Or  for 
the  wide  diffusion  of  similarly  arranged  sediments  over  the 
whole  of  the  Appalachian  basin,  for  we  cannot  ignore  the 
fact  before  stated,  that  the  impress  of  the  same  mechanical 
agencies  which  fashioned  the  structure  of  the  oil-strata,  is 
stamped  upon  all  the  measures  deposited  above  them. 

Those  who  advocate  this  view,  looking  only  at  the  ar- 
rangement of  the  pebbly,  or  oil-producing  portions  of  the 
sand  rock,  seem  to  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  the  synchronal 
equivalents  of  these  pebble-pockets  can  be  unmistakably 
traced  in  almost  continuous,  although  variable,  sheets  of 
sandstone  and  sandy-shale,  for  miles  in  either  direction 
transversely  to  the  axes  of  their  assumed  river  currents. 

Another  argument  against  the  river  current  theory,  is 
found  in  the  even  assortment  and  systematic  arrangement 
of  the  sands  and  pebbles  composing  the  strata.  There  is 
no  confusion  in  tlie  strewing  of  the  materials,  no  inter- 
mixture of  angular,  partly  worn  fragments  of  local  rocks, 
as  would  necessarily  be  the  case  in  sediments  piled  up  by 
fiuviatile  forces — but  everything  betokens  that  the  material 
has  been  subjected  to  the  sifting,  assorting,  triturating  pro- 
cesses, which  are  known  to  belong  only  to  the  action  of  sea 
waves. 

Deep  Sea  Currents. 

§  436.  The  comportment  of  deep  sea  or  off  shore  currents 
and  the  results  of  their  actions,  are  not  so  open  to  observa- 


VENANGO  OIL  SANDS.  III.  235 

tion  as  are  the  like  characteristics  of  fluviatile  and  littoral 
currents.  We  cannot  therefore'  judge  so  confidently  by 
analogy  concerning  them.  It  appears  quit(^  probable,  how- 
ever, from  what  is  known  of  ocean  currents  of  the  present 
day,  that  one  having  sufficient  velocity  to  transport  for  long 
distances,  such  coarse  materials  as  the  oil  sands  in  many 
cases  are  composed  of,  would  keep  its  own  channel  clear,  if 
indeed,  it  did  not  also  wear  away  the  floor  upon  which  it 
moved  ;  and  that  the  pebbles  and  sand  carried  along  by  the 
flow  would  only  be  thrown  off  along  the  margins  of  the 
submerged  stream ; — in  which  case,  so  long  as  the  trans- 
porting forces  occupied  a  fixed  channel,  geographically,  two 
sand-bars  would  be  formed,  separated  by  a  distance  corre- 
sponding to  the  width  of  the  central,  rapid  current,  without 
any  direct  communication  of  sandy  deposits  between  them. 

But  if  the  position  of  the  ocea^  stream  was  not  constant — 
if  liable  at  one  time  to  swing  to  the  right,  at  another  to  the 
left — this  lateral  movement  might  cause  a  partial  re-arrange- 
ment of  the  sand-bars  and  a  silting  up  of  the  old  channels 
as  the  deposits  accumulated. 

The  hypothesis  that  the  position  of  the  current  was  de- 
pendent upon  the  geographical  outlines  of  the  sea  basin 
through  which  it  flowed  ;  that  these  outlines  were  subject  to  • 
great  variation  by  reason  of  changes  in  relative  levels  of  land 
and  water ;  and  that  thus  the  current  was  made  to  swing 
at  one  time  east,  at  another  west ;  strewing  the  materials 
over  a  broad  area  transverse  to  its  axis — sometimes  going  so 
far  to  the  one  side  or  the  other,  as  to  leave  its  previous 
sandy  deposits  on  the  side  of  its  recession  in  comparatively 
quiet  water  during  a  period  of  time  adequate  for  the  accu- 
mulation of  those  finer  sediments  which  are  found  inter- 
stratified  between  the  sand  beds — might  plausibly  account 
for  many  of  the  phenomena  discovered  in  the  drilling  of  oil 
wells.  But,  if  as  before  claimed  in  discussing  the  possible 
effects  of  fluviatile  currents,  there  are  good  reasons  for  in- 
ferring that  the  oil  rocks  were  deposited  in  a  similar  manner 
to  the  coal  rocks — that  the  laws  of  mechanical  deposition 
which  in  after  ages  controlled  the  stratification  of  the  latter, 
were  then  in  force,  and  in  like  manner  governed  the  sedi- 


236  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CAELL. 

mentation  of  the  former — then  it  can  hardly  be  admitted 
that  they  were  deposited  by  deep  sea  currents ;  for  we  have 
indisputable  evidence  that  the  coal  rocks  could  not  have 
been  deposited  under  these  conditions,  but  must  have  been 
laid  down  at  or  near  water  level. 

Other  objections  to  this  hypothesis  are  found  in  the  dis- 
continuity of  the  sandy  deposits  along  what  would  appear 
to  be  the  margins  of  the  ocean  stream  ;  the  intermingling 
of  red  shale  with  the  oil  sands  at  different  horizons  in  dif- 
ferent localities,  the  splitting  of  the  sands  into  two  or  more 
members  going  in  a  southeasterly  direction  from  the  main 
deposit,  all  seeming  to  indicate  the  effects  of  disturbing 
causes,  due  apparently  to  shore  influences  which  could 
hardly  be  expected  to  affect  a  grand  ocean- current  capable 
of  transporting  and  strewing  such  a  ponderous  deposit  of 
pebbles  and  sand  along  its  course,  as  is  here  found  for  a  dis- 
tance of  seventy-five  miles  at  least. 

The  methods  of  deposition  still  in  doubt. 

§  437.  After  a  patient  study  of  the  geological  structure 
of  the  oil  region  for  years,  before,  as  well  as  since  the  or- 
ganization of  the  present  survey,  with  all  the  data  collected 
^by  the  survey  at  command  and  all  the  assistance  that  the 
researches  of  geologists  and  the  practical  operations  of  oil 
developments  can  give,  I  cannot  butf* acknowledge  that  I 
am  still  unable  to  offer  any  well  digested  theory  of  the  pre- 
cise methods  by  which  the  oil  sands  were  deposited.  To 
my  mind  there  are  many  facts  in  connection  with  their 
stratigraphy,  structure  and  geographical  position,  pointing 
strongly  toward  the  probability  of  their  being  shore-line  or 
sea-coast  accumulations,  and  it  will  be  noticed  that  this  re- 
port is  written  throughout  on  the  assumption  that  they 
were  so  formed.  But  the  task  of  proving  this  is  by  no 
means  an  easy  one.  I  shall  not  attempt  it.  The  problems 
involved  are  so  complex,  the  operations  of  nature  so  erratic, 
(paradoxically  speaking,)  because  controlled  by  fixed  laws 
which  must  produce,  under  certain  circumstances,  one  class 
of  results,  and  under  other  combinations,  another  ;  and  the 
physical  forces  and  mechanical  sediments  we  have  to  deal 


VENANGO  OIL  SANDS.  III.  237 

with  in  our  investigations — waves  and  currents,  winds  and 
tides,  sand  and  mud — are  so  variable  in  their  actions  and 
so  mutable  and  prolific  in  specific  results,  that  they  all  must 
be  subjected  to  a  closer  and  more  comprehensive  study  than 
they  have  yet  received,  before  the  varying  results  of  their 
combined  action  can  be  fully  understood  or  satisfactorily 
explained. 

The  aim  in  these  pages  is  to  put  on  record  the  facts  as 
we  find  them,  and  when  conclusions  are  drawn,  as  they 
sometimes  necessarily  must  be,  for  the  purpose  of  argument, 
or  as  a  base  to  work  out  from,  they  must  be  considered  as 
tentative  only,  and  held  subject  to  such  modifications  as 
future  developments  and  discoveries  may  demand. 

With  this  acknowledgement  of  an  inclination  to  view  the 
oil  group  as  virtually  a  shore  deposit  we  will  now  review 
this  method  of  deposition  and  see  if  it  does  not  give  results 
more  in  consonance  with  the  observed  phenomena  exhibited 
in  the  structure  of  the  oil-sands  than  either  of  those  pre- 
viously considered. 

A  new  epocJi  commencing  with  the  Venango  group. 

§  438.  The  lowest  member  of  the  Venango  oil  group — 
whether  it  be  called  third  sand,  or  fourth,  or  fifth — appears  to 
mark  the  commencement  of  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  that 
part  of  the  Appalachian  basin  where  it  is  found.  Anterior  to 
its  formation,  the  conditions  of  the  ocean  bed  geographically 
coincident  with  the  trend  of  the  group,  seems  to  have  re- 
mained comparatively  constant  and  uniform  for  ages.  Drill- 
ings from  rocks  lying  from  one  to  two  thousand  feet  below 
it,  disclose  only  such  finely  levigated  sediments  as  would 
naturally  be  deposited  in  comparatively  still,  deep  water, 
beyond  the  perturbing  influences  of  surface  or  shore. 

There  are  abundant  evidences  in  other  parts  of  the  coun- 
try to  prove  that  during  the  time  this  immense  deposit  of 
underlying  soft  rocks  was  being  formed  here,  several  im- 
portant and  widely-felt  oscillations  of  the  earth-crust  oc- 
curred, resulting,  in  other  localities,  in  alternations  of 
sediments  at  this  horizon,  which  exhibit,  lithologically, 
marked  constitutional  differences,  and  are  readily  distin- 


238  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

guishable  one  from  the  other  by  the  genera  and  species  of 
fossils  found  entombed  in  them.  That  these  changes  were 
not  more  definitely  recorded  in  like  lithological  variations 
of  the  cotemporaneous  strata  beneath  the  oil  rocks,  (of  the 
palreontological  variations,  of  course  we  cannot  speak,  as 
fossils  are  seldom  brought  up  in  the  sand-pump,)  can  only 
be  accounted  for  on  the  presumption  that  the  area  over 
which  the  latter  were  afterwards  superimposed,  was  at  that 
time  so  far  seaward  and  so  deep  below  the  water  surface, 
as  not  to  be  sensibly  affected  by  these  great  physical  move- 
ments, which  must  have  been  broad  and  almost  continental 
in  their  scope. 

So  long  as  these  broad  oceanic  conditions  which  had  ob- 
tained for  ages  in  this  latitude,  continued,  so  long  the  same 
kind  of  sediments  resulted.  But  at  this  point  of  time  (the 
commencement  of  the  oil  group)  a  new  class  of  sediments 
come  in ;  coarse  sand  and  gravel  are  now  laid  down  over 
large  areas,  where  previously  only  mud  and  occasionally  are- 
naceous shales  and  slates  had  been  deposited.  A  radical 
change  evidently  must  here  have  taken  place  both  in  the 
physical  conditions  and  geographical  outlines  of  the  great 
basin  receiving  the  sediments,  and  the  adjacent  lands  sup- 
plying the  materials ;  and  it  is  to  be  remarked,  too,  that 
the  new  order  of  stratification  here  introduced — sands  and 
shales  alternating — continued'  ever  afterward  during  the 
deposition  of  all  the  oil  and  coal  rocks,  and  until  the  final 
post  carboniferous  uplift. 

TJie  base  of  tJie  oil  group  appears  to  furnish  a  well  de- 
fined plane  of  demarkation  between  the  mud-rocks  of  an 
age  of  uniform  conditions  and  the  sandstones  and  shales  of 
a  period  of  mutability  and  unrest.  Below  this  horizon 
everything  appears  to  be  of  a  deep-sea,  still-water  type  ; 
above  it,  strong  transporting  currents,  shifting  in  position 
and  level,  and  locally  intermittent  or  variable  in  action,  have 
inscribed  the  evidences  of  their  presence,  and  left  us  the 
witnesses  of  their  achievements,  in  irregularly  alternating 
strata  of  conglomerate,  sandstone,  and  shale,  all  the  way 
up  to  and  through  the  coal  measures. 


VENANGO  OIL  SAKDS.  III.  239 

Possible  elevation  of  sea-bottom  above  water  level. 

§  439.  We  may  reasonably  infer  that  the  crust  of  the 
earth  has  always  been  rugose ;  that  inequalities  both  of 
sea-bottom  and  dry  land  have  existed  ever  since  the  Azoic 
rocks  first  raised  their  crests  above  the  universal  "waters 
of  the  great  deep."  If,  then,  in  after  times,  a  broad  and 
gradual  uplift  of  the  bed  of  the  old  Devonian  ocean  should 
have  occurred,  say  at  or  near  the  close  of  the  Chemung 
period,  it  would  in  all  probability  have  brought  up  to  day- 
light large  tracts  of  the  uneven  sea-bottom,  particularly 
those  portions  of  it  adjacent  to  the  shoaling  shores  ;  and 
who  knows  but  that  some  islands  might  have  appeared  also, 
while  the  ancient  sub-marine  valleys  remained  submerged  ? 

New  shore  lines  would  thus  be  formed,  new  currents 
established,  new  sources  of  sedimentary  supplies  become 
available.  The  emerging  land  would  be  simply  a  broad 
stretch  of  sea-bottom,  composed  of  mud  and  fine  sand, 
which  for  hundreds  of  feet  in  depth  had  not  yet  been  sub- 
jected to  the  proper  conditions  of  pressure,  heat  and  desic- 
cation to  become  concreted  into  rock. 

Under  these  circumstances  we  may  suppose  that  a  system 
of  drainage  would  soon  inscribe  its  outlines  upon  the  newly 
formed  land,  bringing  down  to  the  sea  immense  volumes  of 
mud  from  the  flats  and  sand  from  the  old  beaches,  to  be 
transported,  assorted,  and  deposited  in  the  basin,  according 
to  the  direction  of  the  currents  and  quality  of  materials. 

The  new  shore-lines,  composed  of  soft  and  easily  abraded 
mud  banks  not  yet  adjusted  to  the  sweep  of  ocean  currents 
or  accustomed  to  the  lash  of  waves,  were  subjected,  no 
doubt,  to  numerous  transformations,  while  the  relations  of 
land  and  water  were  being  established  on  a  natural  basis  ; 
and  these  transformations  were  multiplied  and  complicated 
by  the  varying  contour  of  the  upland  and  by  the  unequal 
shrinkage,  vertically,  of  the  newly  raised  measures,  as  they 
began  to  feel  the  physical  effects  of  their  altered  position — 
the  amount  of  shrinkage  depending  in  a  great  measure  on 
the  position  of  the  beds  affected  by  it,  and  the  quality  of 
the  materials  locally  composing  them. 

Thus,  for  instance,  if  one  part  of  a  coast  line,  backed  by 


240  III.   EEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

a  stable  and  rather  abrupt  mainland,  so  situated  in  relation 
to  the  currents  as  to  receive  and  retain  the  sandy  accumula- 
tions swept  along  in  front  of  it,  should  meantime  slowly 
and  steadily  sink,  might  not  a  deposit  of  sand  pile  up  in 
an  unbroken  mass  over  a  restricted  area,  forming,  as  at 
Triumph,  in  Warren  county,  120  feet  of  Third  sand,  while 
at  another  point,  say  in  Butler  county,  an  unequal  and  ir- 
regular rate  of  shrinkage  and  subsidence,  along  a  coast  line 
not  yet  established  in  harmony  with  the  currents,  (but  to 
which  they  were  obliged,  temporarily,  to  conform  until  they 
could  work  out  their  own  natural  boundaries,)  assisted  by 
a  low  sloping  shore  which  the  waves  were  incessantly  im- 
pinging upon  and  cutting  away,  and  where  a  few  feet  of 
subsidence  might  let  the  waters  sweep  inland  for  miles, 
cause  a  similar  volume  of  wave-washed  sand  to  be  laid  down 
in  several  beds  and  spread  it  out  transversely  for  miles  over 
the  sinking  and  corroding  shore,  thus  forming  successively 
the  Fourth  and  Third  and  Stray  sands  of  that  district, 
wThich  altogether  occupy  only  about  the  same  vertical  space 
that  the  solid  Third  sand  does  at  Triumph. 

Alternating  cJianges  in  relative  levels  of  land  and  water. 

§  440.  There  seems  to  be  no  plausible  way  of  accounting 
for  the  alternations  of  sandstones  and  shales  piled  up  one 
over  the  other  all  through  the  oil  and  coal  measures,  except 
on  the  hypothesis  that  many  changes  in  the  relative  levels 
of  land  and  water  occurred  during  the  periods  in  which 
these  rocks  were  being  deposited.  Whether  these  changes 
were  caused  solely  by  the  rising  or  sinking  of  the  land 
while  the  ocean  level  remained  constant,  or  whether  the 
ocean  level  has  been  periodically  affected  by  cosmic  causes 
as  some  astronomers  and  geologists  have  claimed,  or  has 
fluctuated  at  different  times  by  reason  of  sub-marine  eleva- 
tions or  depressions  of  large  tracts  of  its  deep  water  bed  in 
distant  parts  of  the  globe,  is  immaterial  to  our  discussion. 
The  effect,  if  the  oscillations  were  uniform  throughout  the 
oil  district  would  be  the  same  in  either  case ;  we  may,  there- 
fore, speak  as  if  it  were  only  the  land  levels  that  changed. 

The  evidences  of  these  elevations  and  depressions  as  re- 


VENANGO  OIL  SANDS.  III.  241 

corded  in  the  rocks,  indicate  that  they  were  quite  irregular 
both  as  to  the  periods  of  their  occurrence  and  the  methods 
of  their  accomplishment.  Sometimes  they  appear  to  have 
been  slow,  uniform  and  inconsiderable  in  vertical  range, 
making  but  slight  alterations  in  relative  positions  of  sea 
and  land  ;  at  others  quick  and  grand  rising  or  falling  hun- 
dreds of  feet  at  a  throe,  and  completely  obliterating  or  con- 
fusedly obscuring  all  traces  of  their  previously  existing  geo- 
graphical relations.  In  the  former  case  they  seem  to  have 
occurred  consecutively  in  regularly  alternating  sequence, 
in  the  latter  they  were  intermittent  being  interrupted  by 
long  periods  of  comparative  repose. 

By  this  oscillating  method  of  deposition  it  is  clearly  to 
be  seen  that  we  should  have  two  lines  of  shore  deposits ; 
one  made  when  the  land  was  at  its  highest  elevation,  the 
lower  shore-line  along  the  base  of  the  recently  uplifted 
mainland  ;  the  other  made  when  the  land  was  at  its  lowest 
level,  the  upper  shore-line,  laid  down  along  the  face  of  the 
sunken  mainland  hills  100',  500'  or  1000'  as  the  case  might 
be,  above  the  former  beach — according  to  the  amount  of 
depression  suffered  by  the  land.  It  is  also  evident  that  so 
long  as  these  oscillations  continued,  no  deposits  could  be 
permanently  laid  down,  except  those  that  remained  below 
the  water  at  its  lowest  stages,  for  all  the  upper,  inland  de- 
posits would  be  exposed  to  sub-aerial  erosion  whenever  a 
recession  of  the  waters  occurred.  In  this  way  an  unlimited 
supply  of  loose  materials  derived  from  these  unconsolidated 
upland  deposits  was  always  at  command  though  the  con- 
stant action  of  inflowing  streams,  for  the  rapid  building  up 
of  the  permanent  formations  at  low  water  levels. 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  our  oil  sands  are  simply 
the  re-arranged  materials  of  otlier  ancient  sliore  deposits, 
which  have  been  wrought  over  many  times  in  this  manner, 
without  having  been  previously  consolidated  into  rock. 
The  pebbles  and  sand  have  not  been  brought  down  direct 
from  their  place  of  origin,  broken  up,  triturated,  assorted 
and  deposited  where  we  now  find  them,  by  the  currents  of  a 
single  period  ;  but  they  have  traveled  by  stages,  as  it  were, 

16  III. 


242  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHJT  F-  CARLL. 

and  made  many  a  halt  along  the  sandy  beac7tes  of  previ- 
ously existing  seas. 

We  said  above  that  no  permanent  deposit  could  be  laid 
down  except  at  low  water  level,  but  it  may  have  happened 
that  some  portions  of  the  mountain  or  high  water  beaches 
were  so  situated  in  relation  to  the  agencies  of  sub-aerial 
erosion  as  to  escape  destruction  ;  in  which  case  patches  of 
them  might  remain  almost  intact  during  the  interval  re- 
quired for  filling  up  the  basin  below,  and  when  by  subsi- 
dence they  were  brought  down  to  the  horizon  of  low  .water 
or  permanent  deposits  they  might  be  incorporated  with' very 
little  alteration  into  the  then  forming  strata.  Where  such  an 
occurrence  happened,  there  would  be  an  apparent  exception 
to  the  well  established  geological  rule  that  the  sequence 
of  sedimentation  is  always  upward,  from  the  older  to  the 
newer;  and  if  the  rocks  chanced  to  carry  fossils  purely 
distinctive  of  their  age  some  confusion,  palseontologically 
might  arise,  for  here  would  be  an  older  rock,  lying  in  the 
horizon  of  the  new  and  apparently  stratigraphically  the 
same  as  those  of  the  horizon  in  which  it  was  found. 

It  seems  quite  probable  that  a  composite  stratification  of 
this  kind  has  occurred  in  several  places  in  northwestern 
Pennsylvania,  where  occasional  beds  of  massive  sandstone 
and  conglomerate  are  found,  which  cannot  be  correlated 
with  any  of  the  continuous  sand-belts  of  the  country. 
They  have  every  appearance  of  being  nothing  more  than 
fragmentary  patches — the  isolated  remnants  of  some  old 
mountain  beach. 

Structural  variations  in  sandrock  due  to  varying  physi- 
cal agencies  of  deposition. 

§  441.  The  structure  of  a  sandrock  formed  under  the  con- 
ditions above  alluded  to,  would  depend  very  much  upon 
the  details  of  the  movements  accompanying  the  changing 
levels  of  land  and  sea — whether  the  oscillations  were  regu- 
lar or  intermittent  as  to  time,  quick  or  slow  as  to  motion, 
great  or  small  as  to  vertical  range.  Let  us  see  what  some 
possible  combinations  of  these  several  circumstances  would 
result  in. 


VENAKGO  OIL  SANDS.  III.  243 

First,  suppose  the  levels  to  have  remained  constant,  or 
to  have  varied  only  a  few  feet  for  a  long  period.  Where 
the  conditions  were  favorable,  long  stretches  of  sandy 
beaches  have  accumulated,  with  bays  in  many  places  be- 
tween them  and  the  main  land,  as  seen  at  the  present  day 
all  along  our  ocean  coasts.  Deltas  have  formed  at  the  con- 
fluence of  rivers  with  ocean.  The  mechanical  sediments 
have  been  sifted  and  assorted,  arranged  and  re-arranged  by 
tides  and  currents,  by  winds  and  storms,  and  perhaps  they 
have  been  further  wrought  upon,  also,  by  tidal  waves,  oc- 
casioned by  earthquakes  at  a  distance ;  but  the  materials 
are  all  arranged  in  lines,  rudely  parallel  with  the  average 
trend  of  the  shore  or  of  the  currents  depositing  them.  If 
now  a  rapid  and  considerable  subsidence  of  the  land  occurs 
allowing  the  ocean  to  flow  far  inland,  and  this  be  followed 
by  another  period  of  comparative  rest,  the  old  sea-beaches 
will  be  deeply  covered  with  water,  and  receive  above  them 
the  off-shore  muddy  deposits  brought  into  the  newly  out- 
lined basin,  without  involving  any  material  change  in  their 
position  or  structure,  except,  perhaps,  a  leveling  off  of  some 
of  the  uneven  surfaces  as  the  rising  waters  sweep  over 
them. 

The  buried  deposit  might  be  described  as  consisting  of 
(I)  a  rather  narrow  and  somewhat  continuous  main-belt  of 
sand,  containing  lenticular  patches  of  coarse  grave],  flanked 
seaward  by  finer  and  more  uniform  sand,  gradually  becom- 
ing argillaceous  and  finally  merging  into  shale ;  (2)  sand- 
bars at  the  river  mouths  containing  more  or  less  coarse 
material  laid  down  in  lines  corresponding  to  the  direction 
of  the  currents  ;  (3)  occasional  coarse  sandy  deposits  of  the 
same  character  as  the  main  belt,  formed  along  the  currents 
of  the  inlets,  outlets,  and  channel- ways  of  the  shallow  land- 
locked bays  and  estuaries,  and  perhaps,  also,  in  some  places 
adjacent  to  the  upland  shores. 

This  structure  seems  to  correspond  with  what  the  drill 
has  developed  in  connection  with  the  lowest  or  green  oil 
member  of  the  Venango  group. 

For  another  example,  suppose  the  land  to  be  slowly  ris- 
ing. The  sandy  beaches  are  drawn  out  and  widened  along 


244  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

the  gently  sloping  shore,  as  the  waters  recede,  leaving  long 
parallel  lines  of  hills  and  ridges  exposed  to  the  action  of 
atmospheric  agencies,  ponds  with  connecting  drains  are 
formed  among  them  ;  these  depressions  are  occasionally 
overflowed  by  unusually  high  tides,  and  become  the  re- 
ceptacles for  seaweed,  mud  and  the  wind- driven  sand  and 
dust  of  the  beach  which  eventually  accumulate  to  a  con- 
siderable thickness;  a  rise  of  say  thirty  feet  along  a  shore 
of  this  character,  sloping  seaward  at  the  rate  of  eight  or  ten 
feet  per  mile,  might  thus  widen  out  one  of  these  beaches 
three  or  four  miles.  Now  let  the  motion  be  reversed  and 
the  waters  again  slowly  encroach  upon  the  land.  The 
last  made  sand  ridge  is  driven  back  land- ward, filling  up  all 
the  inequalities  of  the  beach,  covering  the  mud  deposits  in 
pond  and  creek  with  sand,  and  the  water  line  sweeping 
onward  leaves  behind  it  a  perfectly  even  floor  to  receive  the 
muddy  deep-water  deposits,  when  it  has  sunken  to  a  suffi- 
cient depth  to  retain  them. 

The  structure  of  this  rock  would  be  similar  to  that  of  the 
chief  oil  producing  rock  of  Clarion  county,  the  third  sand  belt 
of  Butler,  and  the  stray  sand  of  the  old  Venango  district. 
The  sand  or  pebble  drifts  lie  in  approximately  parallel 
belts  in  some  places  over  wide  areas,  they  are  irregular  in 
thickness,  sometimes  in  one  member  and  sometimes  in  two 
or  more,  the  splitting  being  occasioned,  we  may  suppose, 
by  the  mud  deposits  in  pond  and  creek  which  were  subse- 
quently covered  with  sand.  A  well  drilled  through  one  of 
the  original  sand  hills  finds  a  continuous  sandrock,  Avhile 
one  driven  down  through  an  old  pond  site  encounters  a  vari- 
able sand  with  "mud  veins"  and  interstratified  shales. 

Many  other  possible  and  very  probable  combinations  of 
the  varying  agencies  of  sedimentary  deposition  might  be 
imagined,  but  combine  them  as  we  may  and  study  their 
effects  under  every  possible  combination  as  best  we  can,  and 
still  we  shall  find  many  extraordinary  features  in  the  struc- 
ture of  the  oil  sands  which  might  be  as  plausibly  accounted 
for  under  the  deep  sea-current  hypothesis  as  by  the  shore- 
line theory; 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Crevices  in  the  Sandrock.     Are  they  essential  to  a  paying 
oil  well  ? 

§  442.  During  the  early  years  of  petroleum  development, 
the  theory  of  oil  rock  crevices  obtained  great  currency, 
not  only  among  well-drillers  and  well-owners,  but  also 
among  geologists,  who  examined  and  reported  upon  the 
the  underground  structure  of  the  oil  country.  It  was  the 
popular  belief  that  a  fissure  must  be  struck  in  the  oil  sand 
or  a  well  would  be  a  failure.  Entertaining  this  idea,  the 
driller,  upon  reaching  the  sand,  was  constantly  on  the  alert 
to  find  a  crevice  ;  and  if  he  happened  to  get  a  good  well,  he 
always  remembered  that  at  a  certain  spot  the  drill  dropped, 
and  his  judgment  of  the  distance  it  fell  would  now,  of 
course,  be  influenced  somewhat  by  the  production  of  the 
well.  As  a  consequence,  we  have  had  crevices  reported  all 
the  way  from  one  inch  to  three  feet  in  depth.  It  was  not 
to  be  wondered  at,  perhaps,  if  the  driller  did  find  crevices, 
when  the  geologist  told  him  they  ought  to  be  there  and  his 
employer  considered  them  essential  to  a  paying  well.  Nei- 
ther was  it  surprising  that  those  who  had  never  seen  an  oil 
well  should  freely  accept  the  opinions  of  those  who  were 
supposed  to  understand  the  subject  thoroughly. 

§  443.  Crevice  searcher. — The  crevice  furor  finally  became 
so  prevalent  that  an  instrument  was  devised  and  patented, 
called  a  "crevice  searcher."  It  was  lowered  into  a  well 
by  means  of  poles  like  sucker-rods,  and  designed  to  indi- 
cate how  many,  where  located,  and  how  deep  were  the 
crevices  in  the  oil  sands.  The  cylindrical  body  of  the 
"searcher,"  which  was  about  two  feet  long,  nearly  filled 
the  bore-hole.  In  lowering  it,  whenever  a  crevice  was 
reached  a  little  finger  about  an  inch  long,,  (which  was  kept 
pressed  out  against  the  wall  of  the  well  by  a  spring) 
snapped  out  into  the  opening  and  checked  the  downward 

(245  III.) 


246  III.       KEPOKT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

movement.  Then  by  raising  the  rods  until  the  finger  struck 
the  top  of  the  crevice,  its  exact  measurement  could  be  ob- 
tained. When  this  was  done  and  the  depth  recorded,  the 
finger  was  drawn  back  by  a  cord  running  up  along  the  rods 
to  the  well  mouth,  thus  unlocking  the  instrument  from  the 
crevice  and  allowing  it  to  be  lowered  until  another  one  was 
found. 

This  was  an  excellent  device  for  measuring  the  depth  of 
a  well,  for  the  rods  were  accurately  marked  in  feet  and 
inches,  and  there  could  be  no  stretch  or  slack  to  mislead, 
as  in  the  case  of  measurements  made  by  rope  or  wire.  For 
several  years  it  must  have  been  the  source  of  considerable 
revenue  to  its  owners,  as  it  was  largely  employed  at  a 
charge  of  thirty  dollars  for  an  insertion,  to  ascertain  the 
most  favorable  point  at  which  to  explode  a  torpedo,  when 
the  original  driller's  record  had  been  lost  or  could  not  be 
relied  upon.  The  operators  of  the  machine  became  so  pro- 
ficient in  its  use  that  they  claimed  to  be  able  to  tell  the 
difference  between  shale,  slate  and  sandstone,  by  the  sound 
and  jar  communicated  through  the  rods  at  the  well  mouth, 
as  the  finger  scratched  against  the  changing  strata  in  de- 
scending. But  however  this  may  have  been,  it  is  plainly 
seen  that  the  snapping  out  of  a  catch  or  finger  into  a  re- 
cess in  the  well-wall  was  no  proof  of  a  crevice.  A  rough 
spot  occasioned  by  a  spalling  of  the  rock  while  drilling, 
would  allow  the  catch  to  comport  itself  precisely  as  it 
would  in  a  crevice.  There  was  nothing  to  show  whether 
the  stoppage  was  occasioned  by  a  crevice  or  a  rough  spot ; 
whether  the  cavity  extended  half  an  inch  back  from  the 
wall,  or  half  a  mile. 

Since  the  introduction  of  the  plan  of  drilling  wells  dry, 
that  is  through  large  casing  which  prevents  the  surface 
waters  from  entering  the  hole,  this  device  has  gone  into  dis- 
use. Since  that  time  too,  crevices  are  not  so  much  talked 
about.  This  method  of  drilling  enables  the  well-borer  to 
tell  just  how  his  work  advances,  for  there  is  no  water  in 
the  hole  to  buoy  up  and  obscure  the  action  of  the  tools,  or 
to  hold  back  the  gas  and  oil  when  their  reservoirs  are  pen- 
.etrated.  And  now,  the  driller,  having  discovered  that  large 


CREVICES  IN  THE  SANDROCK.  III.  247 

wells  can  be  obtained  in  porous  sandstone  without  any 
discoverable  fissures,  will  tell  you  that  crevices  in  the  oil 
rocks,  especially  where  they  lie  deep  below  the  surface,  are 
of  rare  occurrence,  and  may  be  considered  as  exceptions  to 
the  general  rule. 

Crevices  in  the  Upper  Sands. 

§  444.  But  this  subject  of  fissures  and  crevices  should 
not  be  treated  flippantly  or  dismissed  summarily,  whatever 
may  have  been  the  extreme  notions  of  fifteen  years  ago. 
It  demands  a  careful  consideration.  That  crevices  or  verti- 
cal fissures  do  ramify  through  all  our  surface  sandstones, 
is  plainly  manifest.  We  see  them  in  every  quarry  that  is 
opened,  in  nearly  every  water- well  that  is  blasted  into  sand- 
rock. 

TTiey  are  encountered  in  many  oil  wells  where  a  sand- 
rock  lies  near  the  surface,  particularly  where  shafts  are 
located  on  the  top  of  an  escarpment  along  a  stream,  or  on 
a  hog-back  between  two  ravines,  and  are  often  the  fruitful 
source  of  a  great  deal  of  annoyance  and  expense  to  the 
well  sinker.  They  are  seldom  found  to  be  absolutely  ver- 
tical ;  their  walls  may  stand  apart  a  few  inches  or  a  foot  or 
more ;  their  faces  are  often  oxydized  and  hardened  almost 
like  iron  ; — where  the  auger  strikes  into  one,  it  will  glance 
and  follow  the  lead  in  spite  of  the  most  judicious  manage- 
ment of  the  workmen,  and  result  in  a  "crooked  hole." 
Sometimes  torpedoes  are  exploded  in  the  crevice  in  hopes 
of  fracturing  the  face  of  the  rock,  so  that  the  hole  may  be 
straightened.  Large  quantities  of  broken  stone  are  then 
thrown  in  and  rammed  down  to  fill  the  hole  and  crevice  to 
the  top  of  the  rock  where  the  trouble  occurs ;  wings  or 
guides  are  put  on  tho  tools  to  keep  them  plumb  and  steady 
in  the  perfect  hole  above  ;  but  all  to  no  purpose — the  drill 
still  glances  and  follows  the  inclined  face  of  the  rock.  The 
only  remedy  now  is  to  abandon  the  shaft,  move  the  rig  a 
few  feet,  and  commence  anew.  In  all  probability  no  diffi- 
culty whatever  will  be  experienced  in  sinking  the  second 
well  through  the  creviced  rock. 

§  445.  Smaller  crevices  containing  fresh  water  are  fre- 


248  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOIIX  F.  CARLL. 

quently  found  below  the  surface  or  bluff  sand.  As  the 
Mountain  sand  group  is  generally  composed  of  several 
arenaceous  and  sometimes  pebbly  bands,  interstratified 
with  slates  and  shales,  the  drill  may  penetrate  a  water- 
crevice  in  an  upper  stratum,  and  afterwards  another  in  a 
lower.  If  the  lower  one  be  connected  with  a  free  outlet,  the 
water  from  the  upper  one  falls  down  and  is  carried  off  by 
it,  thus  draining  the  upper  rock  and  creating  a  waterfall  in 
the  well  which  can  be  plainly  heard  in  the  derrick  and 
clearly  seen  by  lowering  a  candle  in  the  hole.  Many  in- 
stances have  occurred  where  valuable  never  failing  springs 
and  wells  fed  from  an  upper  stratum,  have  been  almost  in- 
stantly dried  up  and  ruined  by  the  striking  of  a  lower 
crevice  of  this  kind  in  an  oil  well  in  the  neighborhood.  It 
is  not  always,  however,  the  nearest  boring  that  taps  a 
spring  or  well,  but  the  one  that  happens  to  strike  the  same 
water  lead  in  the  rock.  The  points  of  interference  are  some- 
times one  hundred  rods  apart. 

§  446.  In  every  new  oil  development  on  high  ground,  one 
of  the  first  effects  noticed  is  a  diminution  in  quantity  or  a 
total  failure  of  the  normal  water  supply  in  springs  and 
wells.  The  shallow  wells  of  the  country,  dug  only  to  the 
first  sand  beneath  the  surface,  soon  fail,  and  a  permanent 
supply  of  water  can  now  be  obtained  only  from  sandrocks 
lying  at  a  lower  horizon.  It  then  becomes  necessary  also 
to  drill  wells  to  furnish  the  water  required  for  the  pur- 
poses of  steam.  These  holes  are  drilled  in  the  derrick, 
about  three  feet  from  the  oil  well  and  are  usually  from  200 
to  300  feet  deep,  (see  Plate  XIV.)  They  sometimes  go  dry, 
however,  for  when  the  deep  oil  hole  is  opened  below  the 
level  of  the  sandrock  supplying  them  with  water,  the  fluid 
may  flow  into  it,  follow  on  down  and  pass  out  through  a 
lower  rock  as  mentioned  above.  The  remedy  in  such  cases 
is  to  drill  the  water  well  doep  into  the  slates  or  shales  be- 
low the  sandrock  so  that  it  may  have  a  pocket  to  collect 
and  hold  the  water  coming  into  it.  There  are  seldom  any 
fissures  or  water  courses  in  these  compact  shales  to  furnish 
a  communication  from  one  well  to  the  other,  although  they 
are  generally  only  about  three  feet  apart. 


CREVICES  JN  THE  SANDROCK.  III.  249 

§  447.  Below  the  fresh  water-bearing  rocks  the  crevices 
are  quite  infrequent  and  smaller,  as  a  general  rule.  Still 
there  appear  to  be  localities,  where,  judging  from  the  heavy 
flows  of  salt  water,  quite  extensive  fissures  exist  in  some  of 
the  lower  sandstones,  as  at  Pittsburgh,  Sharpsburg  and 
other  places  which  might  be  mentioned.  When  the  flow 
of  salt  water  is  not  so  copious  and  is  accompanied  by  a  large 
amount  of  gas,  it  may  be  inferred  that  there  are  sufficient 
avenues  for  its  inflow  through  the  porous  sandstone  with- 
out requiring  the  aid  of  crevices. 

Occasional  fissures  in  tlie  oil  sands,  but  no  communication 
between  the  different  members  of  the  group. 

§  448.  In  the  oil  rocJcs  it  seems  quite  probable  that  in 
some  localities  and  under  certain  conditions,  fissures  do 
exist.  Several  instances  have  been  known  where  one  oil 
well  interfered  with  another  in  such  a  way  that  the  accom- 
panying phenomena  could  not  be  satisfactorily  explained 
on  any  other  hypothesis.  But  these  occurrences  are  com- 
paratively rare,  and  may  be  said  to  be  confined  to  isolated 
areas  of  the  rocks.  The  principal  points  where  these  crev- 
ices are  reported,  are  in  the  Venango  district,  where  the 
drilling  is  the  shallowest ; — at  Tidioute,  in  Warren  county, 
the  rock  lying  about  100  feet  below  the  river ;  on  Oil  creek, 
depth  about  450  feet ;  near  Franklin  (in  First  sand),  from 
200  feet  to  300  feet.  In  the  hill  wells  of  Venango  district, 
which  are  from  800'  to  900'  deep,  and  in  the  1500'  wells  of 
Butler  county,  crevices  in  the  oil  rocks  are  very  seldom  re- 
ported, and  when  they  are  there  is  always  a  shadow  of 
doubt  resting  upon  the  authenticity  of  the  record. 

§  449.  It  is  also  quite  apparent  that  the  fissures  belonging 
to  one  stratum  or  member  of  a  sandstone  group  are  not 
connected  with  those  of  another  stratum  above  or  below  it. 
For  instance,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Noble  well,  on  Oil  creek, 
where  these  connecting  crevices  seem  undoubtedly  to  exist, 
as  shown  by  the  action  of  the  wells,  confirmed  also  by  the 
drillers'  report  of  crevices  struck  while  drilling,  the  stray 
Third  sand  and  regular  Third  sand  are  separated  by  only 
about  twenty  feet  of  shaly  slates;  still  the  Third  sand 


250  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

produces  the  typical  green  oil,  and  the  Stray,  (when  pro- 
ductive), the  typical  black  oil,  showing  quite  conclusively 
that  there  can  be  no  direct  crevice  connection  between  the 
two  strata. 

Crevices  more  numerous  in  the  upper  sands  than  in  the 
lower. 

§  450  Reviewing  the  subject,  then,  we  find  the  upper 
sandstones  much  more  frequently  and  extensively  fissured 
than  the  lower  ones,  and  containing  fresh  water ;  the  mid- 
dle series  occasionally  fractured  and  producing  salt  water ; 
the  lower  series  seldom  fractured,  and  containing  salt  water 
and  oil. 

But  the  terms  upper,  middle,  and  lower,  are  not  fixed 
terms,  as  here  applied.  The  upper  sandstones  of  Butler 
county  have  no  existence  in  the  high  Pleasantville  district 
of  Venango  county  ;  the  upper  sandstones  of  Pleasantville 
are  wanting  in  the  valley  wells  at  Tidioute,  in  Warren 
county.  This  is  due  to  the  gradual  rise  of  the  whole  mass 
of  rocks  going  northeast  from  Butler,  by  which  the  higher 
strata  crop  out  successively  and  terminate,  one  after  the 
other,  on  the  hilltops  in  that  direction. 

As  a  result  of  this,  the  upper  or  fresh  water  rocks  at 
Tidioute  embrace  all  the  measures  from  the  Second  Mount- 
ain sand,  capping  the  hilltops,  down  to  and  including  the 
First  oil  sand,  while  in  Butler  county  these  strata  bear 
only  salt  water,  and  in  intermediate  places  the  bottom  of 
the  fresh  water  series  is  in  some  cases  the  Second  Mountain 
sand,  and  in  others  the  Pithole  grit.  The  lower  fresh  water 
sands  of  Tidioute  yield  salt  water  at  Pleasantville,  and 
going  higher  up  in  the  series  the  Pleasantville  fresh  water 
sands  are  in  turn  found  to  be  charged  with  salt  water  in 
Butler  and  Clarion.  Thus  we  see  that  these  sandstones, 
which  all,  no  doubt,  at  some  time  contained  salt  water, 
have  experienced  radical  changes  in  their  water-bearing  at- 
tributes, according  to  the  several  conditions  in  which  they 
have  been  placed  since  their  uplift  from  the  ocean  bed. 

The  facts  recited  above  point  plainly  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  surface  sandstones  have  been  more  fractured  and 


CREVICES  IN  THE  SANDROCK.  III.  251 

disturbed  than  those  lying  at  a  greater  depth;  and  that 
wherever  the  position  of  a  bed  offers  an  opportunity  for  it 
to  be  affected  by  atmospheric  agencies,  or  traversed  by 
water  from  the  surface,  it  has  been  so  thoroughly  washed 
by  the  percolation  of  rain;water  that  no  trace  remains  of 
the  saline  materials  it  formerly  contained. 

Porous  Sandstone  as  a  reservoir  and  channel  for  large 
flows  of  oil. 

§  451.  Some  oil  producers  stoutly  maintain  that  a  flow- 
ing well  of  one,  two,  or  three  thousand  barrels  per  day  can- 
not be  obtained  unless  a  crevice  is  struck ;  that  a  sandrock, 
however  porous  it  may  be,  cannot  afford  a  sufficient  chan- 
nel for  so  large  a  quantity  of  fluid  to  come  into  a  well. 

If  we  examine  a  piece  of  oil  rock  brought  up  after  a  tor- 
pedo has  been  exploded,  or  some  of  the  Third  sandstone 
taken  by  hand  from  the  stratum  in  place  and  laid  open  to 
view  at  the  bottom  of  the  large  oil-shaft  sunk  by  blasting, 
at  Tidioute,  we  shall  find  it  simply  a  conglomerate  of  peb- 
bles seldom  larger  than  grains  of  wheat,  loosely  held  to- 
gether in  a  sandy  matrix.  At  first  sight  it  hardly  seems 
possible  for  any  large  quantity  of  oil  to  pass  into  a  well 
through  the  interstices  between  the  pebbles,  but  experi- 
ments made  in  a  crude  way  on  a  number  of  pieces  of  this 
oil  rock,  prove  quite  conclusively  that  it  is  capable  of  ab- 
sorbing and  holding  from  one-fifteenth  to  one-tenth  of  its 
own  bulk  of  water  or  oil,'  this,  too,  when  the  pores  of  the 
rock  are  more  or  less  clogged  with  residuum  from  the  oil 
previously  held  by  it,  and  without  its  being  charged  under 
pressure. 

§  452.  The  diameter  of  an  ordinary  oil  well  being  5±" 
the  circumference  of  the  circle  is  therefore  17TVa  inches  and 
the  area  of  its  cross  section  23TVa  square  inches.  Suppose 
the  interspaces  of  the  oil  rock  to  amount  in  proportion  to 
its  whole  bulk,  to  only  one-seventeenth,  instead  of  one-fif- 
teenth, or  one-tenth,  as  we  have  ascertained  it  to  be  in  some 
cases  ;  then  for  every  inch  of  depth  drilled  in  an  oil  sand, 
by  which  17T2c8s  square  inches  of  its  surface  is  laid  bare,  (say- 
ing nothing  about  the  bottom  area  of  the  hole,)  we  shall 


252  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F    CARLL. 

have  at  least  one  square  inch  of  oil  ducts,  venting  into  the 
well.  A  depth  then  of  23Tyff  inches  would  give  23T7A  square 
inches  as  the  combined  area  of  the  inflowing  oil  leads,  and 
this  equals  the  full  capacity  of  the  5£  inch  hole.  In  other 
words  the  aggregate  sum  of  the -pores  or  interspaces  of  a 
sandrock  of  this  kind,  as  exposed  in  the  walls  of  a  well  of 
5f  inches  diameter,  is  equivalent  to  the  area  of  an  open 
crevice  one  inch  wide,  extending  from  top  to  bottom  of  the 
gravel  bed,  whatever  its  thickness  may  be. 

No  account  is  here  made  of  the  friction  encountered  by 
the  oil  in  passing  through  the  thousands  of  pores  in  the 
sandstone,  nor  of  the  compensating  force  of  gas  impelling 
the  oil  under  a  tremendous  pressure  through  them. 

This  imperfect  calculation  is  not  intended  to  show  just 
how  much  oil  a  porous  rock  could  deliver,  but  simply  to 
exhibit  the  possibilities  of  a  flow  through  and  from  it,  equal 
even  to  the  full  capacity  of  the  well-bore.  When  there  is 
from  five  to  ten  feet  of  this  kind  of  rock  to  drill  through,  it 
can  readily  be  seen  that  a  flow  of  three  or  four  thousand 
barrels  per  day  might  easily  be  maintained  through  the 
operation  of  these  numerous  oil  leads,  making  ample  allow- 
ance for  friction  and  all  other  contingencies,  without  requir- 
ing the  aid  of  crevices  to  convey  the  oil  into  the  well. 

§  453.  There  are  others  who  imagine  that  the  oil  lies  in 
a  series  of  lakes  or  caverns  connected  together  by  under- 
ground streams  and  sometimes  receiving  supplies  from  long 
distances.  Otherwise,  they  affirm,  individual  wells  could 
not  produce  so  largely  as  some  have  done,  nor  could  farms 
and  districts  have  such  an  immense  amount  of  oil  stored 
beneath  them  as  has  been  extracted  from  some  localities, 
particularly  along  Oil  creek. 

In  answer  to  this  idea  we  append  a  few  figures  below, 
which  will  afford  the  means  of  readily  calculating  the  pos- 
sible capacity  of  a  porous  sandstone,  and  any  one  who  will 
take  the  trouble  to  study  and  apply  them  will  perceive  that 
"  lakes  of  oil"  may  be  stored  in  a  sandstone  30',  50' or  100' 
in  thickness  without  the  intervention  of  extensive  caverns 
or  fissures. 


CREVICES  IN  THE  SAKDROCK.  III.  253 

Superficial  quantities. 

43.560  square  feet  in  an  acre. 
27.878.400  square  feet  in  a  square  mile. 
6.272.640  square  inches  in  an  acre. 
4.014.489.600  square  inches  in  a  square  mile. 

Cubical  quantities. 

9.702     cubic  inches  in  a  barrel  of  42  gallons. 


Production  of  oil  per  acre. 

646  &%  barrels  if  the  sheet  of  oil  be  1  inch  deep. 

1293ToD%        "  «  "  2 


4.997^        »  "  7rffr    " 

Production  of  oil  per  square  mile. 

414.779$},  barrels  if  the  sheet  of  oil  be  1  inch  deep. 

827.559$%        "  "  "  2          " 

1.241.338^        «  "  "  3 

3.198.515^        «  "  "  7rf&     « 

§  454.  We  have  said  above  that  experiments  made  in  a 
crude  way  indicate  that  an  oil  sand  may  contain  as  much  as 
one  tenth  of  its  bulk  in  oil.  There  can  be  little  doubt,  how- 
ever, that  a  good  rock  in  its  normal  condition  and  under 
pressure  might  hold  an  equivalent  of  one-eighth.  This 
would  be  equal  to  a  solid  sheet  of  oil  one  and  a  half  inches 
in  thickness  in  every  vertical  foot  of  good  oil  sand,  or 
nearly  1000  barrels  per  acre.  On  Oil  creek  there  is  gen- 
erally from  30'  to  50'  of  Third  sand,  and  also  from  15'  to 
30'  of  Stray  sand,  both  locally  producing  oil.  Of  this  total, 
suppose  only  15'  is  good  oil-bearing  pebble  ;  we  shall  then 
have  a  producing  capacity  of  15,000  barrels  per  acre,  or 
9,600,000  barrels  per  square  mile,  which  is  adequate  to  the 
requirements  of  the  most  exceptional  cases  known. 

Nothing  need  be  said  of  small  wells  and  moderately  pro- 
ductive districts,  for  there  is  no  difficulty  whatever  in  dis- 
covering ample  storage-room  in  porous  sandstones  of  very 
inferior  quality  for  all  the  oil  that  may  be  obtained  from 
them. 

§  455.  The  above  remarks  having  been  confined  exclu- 
sively to  the  Venango  Oil  Group  and  strata  above  it,  the 


254  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHX  F.   CARLL. 

question  may  be  asked,  do  the  same  conditions  exist  in  the 
Warren  and  Bradford  oil-fields  ?  To  a  certain  extent  they 
undoubtedly  do.  But  nearly  all  the  valleys  of  the  last 
named  sections  are  cut  down  into  the  Chemung  formation  ; 
consequently  the  sandstones  of  the  Lower  District  only 
appear  in  the  high  land  and  ridges  of  the  Upper  Dis- 
trict, and  those  which  are  the  most  prominent  belong  prin- 
cipally to  the  Mountain  sand  series.  These  form  "rock 
cities"  on  the  hilltops,  are  creviced  and  broken  in  a  man- 
ner similar  to  those  of  Venango  and  Butler,  and  frequently 
perplex  the  driller  with  similar  difficulties.  So  far,  there 
is  no  point  of  difference  to  be  noted.  But  the  character- 
istics of  the  principal  oil-producing  sands  of  the  three  dis- 
tricts are  entirely  dissimilar.  The  Venango  Third  sand 
is  a  coarse  pebble-rock  associated  with  a  clean  white  sand  ; 
the  ''Warren  Third  sand"  is  fine-grained,  bluish-grey, 
and  somewhat  muddy;  the  "Bradford  Third  sand"  is 
of  medium  grain,  friable,  but  sometimes  almost  floury 
and  of  a  decided  brown  or  snuff  color. 

Still,  while  these  sands  differ  so  notably  in  composition, 
texture  and  color,  and  while  they  differ  also  in  the  charac- 
ter and  color  of  the  oils  produced,  there  is  nothing  in  the 
action  of  the  wells,  as  far  as  I  can  discover,  to  warrant  the 
inference  that  crevices  are  more  frequent  in  one  stratum 
than  another. 

§  456.  But  the  measures  above  the  Warren  and  Brad- 
ford "Third  sands"  have  produced  considerable  "shale 
or  slush  oil,"  which  may  perhaps  be  attributed  to  a  fissured 
condition  of  these  rocks. 

At  North  Warren  oil  is  obtained  irregularly  in  shale  or 
sandstone,  and  at  very  variable  depths  ;  one  well  may  find 
it  in  shale  at  300  feet,  the  next  one  in  sandstone  at  600  feet, 
and  others  in  the  immediate  vicinity  at  almost  any  inter- 
mediate point.  The  character  of  the  shales,  the  variability 
of  the  points  of  inflow,  and  the  action  of  the  wells,  which 
start  off  at  the  rate  of  two  or  three  hundred  barrels  per 
day  and  soon  dwindle  down  to  ten  barrels,  lead  to  the  in- 
ference that  the  oil  lies  in  crevices.  As  far  as  known,  how- 
ever, these  conditions  exist  over  but  a  limited  area,  and 


CREVICES  IN  THE  SAND     ROCK.  III.  255 

are  undoubtedly  due  to  comparative^  local  causes,  not 
at  present  sufficiently  understood  to  be  satisfactorily  ex- 
plained. 

§457.  In  the  Bradford  district  "slush  oil"  is  also  ob- 
tained in  some  localities  under  conditions  very  similar  to 
those  above  described,  and  it  is  furthermore  claimed  that 
on  the  "Tuna  flats,"  in  the  neighborhood  of  State  line, 
wells  but  a  few  rods  apart  strike  oil  in  rocks  below  the 
"  Third  sand"  at  unequal  distances,  and  in  such  an  un- 
usual manner  that  the  occurrence  can  only  be  accounted 
for  on  the  supposition  that  the  rocks  at  that  horizon  and 
in  that  locality  are  fissured  in  an  exceptionable  manner. 


256  III.       HEPOItT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOIIX  F.  CAULL. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

(Illustrated  by  Plate  XXXV.) 

'''Flooded  territory.'1''  How  water  invades  the  sandrock  to 
the  exclusion  of  oil  and  gas.  A  review  of  some  of  the 
circumstances  attending  its  occurrence. 

§  458.  As  a  general  rule,  the  first  oil  wells  in  a  prolific 
district  produce  but  little  salt  water  with  the  oil,  unless  they 
are  located  in  shallow  territory  where  the  oil  rock  lies  in 
such  a  position  as  to  be  somewhat  affected  by  communica- 
tion with  the  surface.  The  movement  of  water  through 
the  oil  sands,  called  "flooding"  is  an  abnormal  condition 
following  development,  and  occurs  only  after  the  oil  has 
been  partially  exhausted  from  the  rock.  It  may  always  be 
attributed  to  the  letting  down  of  surface  water  through 
abandoned  well-shafts — no  precautions  having  been  taken 
when  wells  were  dismantled,  to  effectually  shut  off  all  com- 
munication between  the  upper,  or  water  bearing  rocks,  and 
the  oil  sands  ;  either  by  filling  up  the  lower  part  of  deserted 
wells  with  sand  and  sediment ;  or  by  inserting  wooden  plugs 
in  the  borings,  below  the  horizon  of  fresh  water  veins. 

Now  as  the  partial  drainage  of  a  district  must  first  be  ac- 
complished before  it  can  suffer  from  the  effects  of  flooding, 
and  as  a  structure  of  sandrock  which  facilitates  a  rapid 
delivery  of  oil  affords  a  correspondingly  free  medium  for 
the  reception  and  onward  movement  of  water,  we  may  very 
properly  in  a  consideration  of  the  subject  of  flooding,  com- 
mence with  a  "pool"  of  oil  in  its  normal  state  and  follow 
it  through  all  of  its  changes  until  finally  invaded  and  de- 
stroyed by  water. 

§459.  The  word  "pool"  has  been  rather  arbitrarily 
pressed  into  service  in  this  connection.  It  is  an  oil  miner's 
term  intended  to  convey  the  idea  of  a  body  of  oil  stored  in 
the  porous  portions  of  a  sandrock  and  practically  independ- 


FLOODED  TERRITORY.  III.  257 

enfc  of  other  pools  or  deposits  of  the  same  character  : — thus 
he  speaks  of  the  Pithole  pool,  the  Cashup  pool,  the  Church 
run  pool,  &c.  It  is  also  used  in  a  more  restricted  sense  to 
designate  rich  spots  in  the  same  district  which  may  have 
some  slight  connection  with  each  other — as  the  United  States 
well  pool ;  the  Homestead  well  pool ;  the  Burtis  well  pool — 
all  near  together  and  within  the  great  Pithole  pool,  but 
having  small  wells  or  dry  holes  between  them. 

§  460.  It  is  a  fact  well  established  by  experience,  that  the 
pioneer  wells  of  any  district,  if  drilled  within  the  possible 
limits  of  a  productive  pool,  are  more  certain  to  prove  re- 
munerative than  those  put  down  at  a  later  date  after  the 
field  has  been  fairly  developed — although  the  latter  may  be 
sunken  through  a  sandstone  of  better  quality  than  the  for- 
mer ;  and  the  reason  of  this  is  obvious  if  our  theory  of  the 
physical  structure  of  the  oil  sand  be  correct. 

Suppose  a  lenticular  deposit  of  pebble  rock  stored  with 
oil,  to  lie  embeded  in  fine  argillaceous  and  almost  imper- 
vious sandstone  which  completely  isolates  it  from  other  de- 
posits of  similar  character  lying  perhaps  but  a  short  dis- 
tance from  it.  In  this  shape  it  is  practically  an  hermetically 
sealed  oil  tank  full  of  oil  and  gas,  under  a  tension  not  sus- 
ceptible of  precise  calculation,  but  which,  judging  from  the 
effects  observed  when  the  pool  is  tapped,  may  be  300  pounds 
or  more  to  the  square  inch.  The  first  well  piercing  this 
deposit,  although  it  may  only  touch  the  extreme  thin  edge 
of  it,  will  have  a  large  reservoir  to  draw  from,  and  a  tremend- 
ous pressure  of  gas  to  assist  and  augment  its  delivery  ; 
whereas  one  put  down  after  the  bulk  of  oil  has  been  ex- 
tracted and  the  pressure  reduced  to  two  or  three  atmos- 
pheres, receives  but  sluggish  streams  of  oil  and  feeble  gas 
aid,  even  if  it  passes  through  a  much  greater  thickness  of 
oil  bearing  rock,  and  cannot  therefore  yield  so  largely. 

Those  who  still  adhere  to  the  old  notions  of  crevices  and 
fissures  ramifying  through  all  the  measures,  with  free  circu- 
lation of  fluids  through  them,  will  object  to  this  hypothesis 
of  sealed  reservoirs.  But  we  submit  that  in  view  of  the 
many  facts  cited  in  these  pages,  which  harmonize  with  such 
a  conclusion,  the  inference  that  they  do  exist,  practically, 
17  III. 


258  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

is  not  an  unreasonable  one,  even  if  the  proofs  of  it  do  not 
amount  to  actual  demonstration. 

§  461.  Geologically  speaking  as  to  time,  there  is  no  doubt 
a  slow  process  of  circulation  through  all  the  measures  ;  for 
nature  is  ever  active  and  on  the  alert  to  restore  any  disturb- 
ance of  an  equilibrium.  But  practically,  during  the  short 
time  they  are  being  drained,  the  oil  pools  are  sealed  reser- 
voirs. 

A  thoroughly  drilled  district  partially  deprived  of  its  oil 
and  relieved  from  excessive  gas  pressure,  will  undoubtedly 
be  again  supplied  and  filled  with  water,  oil,  or  gas  from  the 
contiguous  rocks,  until  the  equilibrium  is  restored — for 
"nature  abhors  a  vacuum" — but  this  re-filling  would  be  a 
slow  process,  were  it  not  for  numerous  free  passages  opened 
by  the  drill,  through  which  surface  water  may  find  access 
into  the  oil  rock.  The  manner  in  which  the  intruding  cur- 
rents deport  themselves,  will  be  seen  to  be,  as  we  proceed, 
a  strong  argument  in  favor  of  the  inferred  discontinuity  and 
isolation  of  the  pebble  deposits  of  different  districts. 

§  462.  The  first  wells  to  tap  a  new  pool  of  oil  have  more 
vitality  than  those  which  follow,  but  these  wells  do  not  al- 
ways happen  to  be  on  the  best  part  of  the  rock.  For  in- 
stance, National  well  No,  1,  situated  within  a  few  rods  of 
No.  2,  (II,  No.  57.)  was  struck  in  February,  1866.  It  was 
very  near  the  northwesterly  edge  of  a  large  and  well  stored 
pool,  and  passed  through  rather  an  inferior  oil  rock,  as  com- 
pared with  that  afterwards  found  on  the  axis  of  the  belt. 
Still  it  had  a  sufficiently  free  connection  with  the  supply- 
ing reservoir  to  furnish  a  delivery  of  about  85  barrels  per 
day,  and  it  maintained  its  production  with  wonderful  con- 
stancy for  two  years,  having  only  declined  to  about  60  bar- 
rels in  that  time.  In  the  summer  of  1868  wells  were  drilled 
on  the  center  of  the  deposit  from  which  it  had  been  deriv- 
ing its  supply.  Some  of  these  wells  produced  as  much  as 
150  barrels  per  day.  The  effect  on  the  National  was  im- 
mediately apparent.  Its  production  dropped  off  rapidly 
and  dwindled  down  to  10  barrels  or  less  per  day. 

§  463.  Rock  well  No.  1,  (II,  No.  359,)  in  the  same  neigh- 
borhood, but  on  the  opposite  (south)  side  of  the  pool,  had 


FLOODED  TEREITORY.  III.  259 

a  similar  history  although  it  never  was  so  large  a  producer 
as  the  National. 

A  few  rods  north  of  National  No.  1,  a  fine,  close  rock 
with  very  little  oil  was  obtained  in  drilling  other  wells.  In 
wells  a  few  rods  south  of  Rock  well  similar  features  pre- 
vailed, but  a  number  of  other  pools,  not  directly  connected 
with  this  one  came  in  at  intervals  to  the  southeast  between 
it  and  Pithole  city. 

§  464.  Harmonial  well  No.  1,  (II,  No.  24,)  was  on  the 
thinning  northerly  edge  of  the  Pleasantville  belt.  The  main 
body  of  oil  and  the  best  sandrock  as  afterwards  demon- 
strated, lay  to  the  south.  It  started  with  a  small  yield  and 
at  the  end  of  a  fortnight  was  pumping  about  30  barrels 
per  day.  Gradually  increasing  its  production,  as  if  en- 
larging and  cleaning  out  the  passages  leading  into  the  sup- 
plying reservoir,  it  finally  commenced  to  flow  and  ran  up  to 
125  barrels,  where  it  remained  until  wells  of  larger  flow 
were  drilled  on  the  center  of  the  belt  and  relieved  the  gas 
pressure,  when  pumping  had  to  be  resumed.  After  this  it 
soon  fell  down  to  an  unremunerative  production  and  was 
abandoned. 

§  465.  Nettleton  wett  No.  1,  (II,  No.  8,)  another  edge  well 
furnishes  a  similar  history.  It  maintained  a  comparatively 
steady  production  for  two  years,  but  quickly  succumbed 
when  the  center  of  the  pool  was  attacked. 

§  466.  Holmes  and  Brown  well  No.  1,  GasTiup,  (II,  No. 
981,)  may  be  referred  to  as  another  example  of  the  com- 
portment of  these  edge  wells. 

§467.  Scores  of  similar  references  could  be  ffiven,  but 
these  are  ample  to  show  that  where  direct  communication 
does  exist  through  the  porous  sand  rock  or  through  crevices 
it  is  soon  made  manifest  in  the  action  of  the  wells.  There- 
fore the  inference  is,  that  if  the  oil  deposits  do  not  lie  in 
practically  disconnected  pools  as  above  suggested,  we  should 
not  from  year  to  year  find  new  oil  fields  within  short  dis- 
tances of  exhausted  areas,  lying  under  a  normal  pressure 
of  gas  and  not  having  been  sensibly  affected  in  any  manner 
by  the  depletion  of  contiguous  territory. 

If  but  a  small  communication  exist  between  two  reser- 


260  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

voirs  each  filled  with  oil  and  gas  under  a  pressure  of  from 
100  to  300  fcs.  to  the  square  inch,  and  the  pressure  in  one 
of  them  be  reduced  to  a  point  within  three  pounds  of  an 
absolute  vacuum,  (as  has  been  done  by  the  agency  of  gas 
pumps  at  Triumph  in  Warren  county  and  elsewhere,)  it 
would  seem  that  at  least  a  partial  restoration  of  an  equi- 
librium ought  to  be  effected  within  two  or  three  years'  time, 
even  if  a  considerable  distance  intervened  between  them. 

§  468.  Pithole  was  practically  exhausted  in  1867.  Yet 
Cashup,  only  two  miles  to  the  northeast,  lay  undiscovered 
until  1871.  When  the  latter  district  was  tapped  it  exhibited 
all  the  normal  conditions  of  new  territory,  a  tremendous 
pressure  of  gas  and  an  abundance  of  lively  oil  which  at- 
tested their  energy  and  force  by  a  well  flowing  over  1000 
barrels  per  day, 

§  469.  Shamburg  was  discovered  several  years  after  the 
Oil  creek  rock  had  been  practically  drained  and  although 
not  more  than  three  miles  from  the  world  renowned  Noble 
well  district,  no  direct  communication  has  ever  been  traced 
between  the  two  oil  fields. 

§  470.  Bullion  the  champion  district  of  1877,  lay  with  its 
wonderful  store  of  oil  and  gas  within  a  mile  and  a  half  of 
Scrubgrass,  unaffected  by  the  drainage  and  almost  com- 
plete exhauston  of  the  latter  six  or  seven  years  before. 

:§  471.  Butler  and  Clarion  are  now  constantly  furnish- 
ing new  pools  outside  of  previously  developed  areas,  which 
show  no  symptoms  of  having  been  interfered  with  or  weak- 
ened by  any  of  the  previous  operations. 

-Facts  like  these,  (and  many  more  might  be  given  in  de- 
tail were  it  necessary,)  point  strongly  to  the  correctness  of 
the  inference  'that  the  oil  producing  pebble  sands  lie  in 
pockets  or  patches  so  completely  surrounded  by  an  almost 
impervious  rock,  that  practically  they  may  be  considered 
as  independent  masses  and  treated  accordingly. 

In  conformity  then  with  this  view  of  the  subject  let  us 
trace  the  history  of  one  of  these  oil  pools  from  its  first  tap- 
ping by  the  drill  to  its  final  abandonment  on  account  of 
'becoming flooded  with  water. 

§  472.    With  the  present  method  of  drilling  through  cas- 


FLOODED  TERRITORY.  III.  261 

ing  and  thus  preventing  the  surface  water  from  following 
down  to  the  lower  rocks,  the  effect  upon  tapping  the  oil  sand 
is  quite  different  from  what  it  was  under  the  old  process 
when  the  drill  hole  was  full  of  water.  In  the  latter  case 
the  column  of  water  in  a  deep  well  held  the  gas  and  oil  in 
check  and  but  slight  indications  of  oil  would  be  seen  until 
the  well  was  tubed  and  a  portion  at  least  of  the  water 
pumped  out.  But  now  the  hole  having  only  a  few  feet  of 
fluid  in  it  when  the  sand  rock  is  pierced,  the  effect  is  simi- 
lar to  the  sudden  liberation  of  the  safety  valve  to  a  steam 
boiler  under  a  full  pressure  of  steam.  The  tremendously 
compressed  gas  and  oil  rush  at  once  into  the  opening — the 
drill  hole  is  soon  filled — and  when  the  depth  of  well  is  not 
too  great  in  proportion  to  the  force  of  gas,  the  boiling,  foam- 
ing mass  is  driven  upwards  against  the  forces  of  gravity, 
against  the  resistance  of  the  atmosphere,  and  vents  at  the 
well  mouth  or  shoots  high  above  the  top  of  the  derrick. 

§  473.  The  date  of  the  first  flow  from  one  of  these  pools 
marks  the  commencement  of  a  new  era  in  its  history.  For 
ages  the  oil  has  been  locked  up  in  the  pores  of  the  rock, 
and  there  can  be  little  doubt  but  that  an  equitable  pressure 
has  been  established  throughout  every  freely  communicat- 
ing portion  of  it.  The  equilibirum  is  now  suddenly  de- 
stroyed in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  well  by  the  libera- 
tion of  compressed  gas  and  oil  seeking  a  rapid  exit  through 
the  drill  hole,  because  the  pressure  in  the  rock  is  greater 
than  the  forces  to  be  overcome  by  the  oil  in  its  ascent.  The 
result  is  the  rarification  of  the  elastic  and  expansile  materials 
filling  the  pores  of  the  sand  rock  immediately  surrounding 
the  perforation  made  by  the  drill.  Suppose  the  pressure 
in  a  radius  of  ten  feet  to  be  thus  quickly  reduced  from  300 
Ibs  to  the  square  inch  to  150  fbs,  this  allows  the  next  con- 
centric area  proportionately  to  expand  and  reduce  in  like 
manner,  and  that  the  next  and  so  on,  the  movement  gradu- 
ally widening,  the  pressure  gradually  reducing  until  all  the 
freely  communicating  portions  of  the  rock  are  relieved, 
when  the  oil  for  lack  of  propelling  force  ceases  to  flow.  An 
equilibirum  has  been  restored.  The  rock  is  still  full  of  oil 
and  gas  under  pressure,  .biit  it  is  counterbalanced  by  the 


262  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

weight  of  the  column  of  fluid  in  the  hole  and  the  atmos- 
phere above  it. 

§  474.  The  pump  is  now  introduced,  and  lifting  the  fluid 
from  the  level  of  the  sand  rock  relieves  it  of  a  pressure 
equivalent  to  the  weight  of  the  oil  in  the  hole  and  leaves 
the  gas  free  to  again  go  through  with  the  expanding  and 
rarefying  processes  as  before,  it  having  now  to  overcome 
only  the  weight  of  its  own  column  of  gas  ascending  between 
the  tubing  and  well  walls  against  atmospheric  pressure. 

After  the  introduction  of  the  pump  a  generous  flow  cen- 
tres toward  the  well,  and  this  continues  for  a  longer  or 
shorter  period,  dependent  in  a  great  measure  upon  the  num- 
ber of  wells  at  work  in  the  immediate  vicinity  ;t  but  gradu- 
ally in  any  case  the  pressure  in  the  rock  is  relieved,  it  falls 
to  50  fbs.— 40  fcs.— 30  fts.— 20  ft>s.  ;  both  oil  and  gas  decreas- 
ing as  the  pressure  decreases.  When  it  lowers  to  16  or  18 
fos.  very  little  gas  can  make  its  way  to  the  surface  ;  but  still 
the  rock  contains  an  abundance  of  oil,  for  when  a  gas-pump 
is  now  attached  to  the  casing-head  to  further  relieve  it  of 
atmospheric  pressure,  the  effect  is  quickly  apparent,  in  an 
increase  of  both  gas  and  oil.  If  the  gas-pump  be  a  good 
one  we  have  by  this  means,  in  effect,  added  from  10  to  12  ft>s. 
pressure  to  the  oil  in  the  rock  by  relieving  the  gas  from  that 
amount  of  atmospheric  opposition  which  it  previously  had 
to  overcome.  Still,  after  all  this  is  done  and  the  well  cham- 
ber is  so  thoroughly  exhausted  by  the  gas  pump  that  a 
vacuum  gauge  may  show  a  downward  pressure  of  13  Ibs.  to 
the  square  inch,  the  rock  contains  oil,  as  is  proven  by  the 
manner  in  which  it  is  further  acted  upon  by  the  introduc- 
tion of  water  into  it. 

§  475.  Oil  and  gas  in  their  normal  conditions,  appear  to 
lie  in  the  sandrock  not  as  distinct  bodies  occupying  separate 
portions  of  the  rock,  but  as  one  substance,  the  gas  being  as 
thoroughly  incorporated  with  the  oil,  as  gas  is  with  water 
in  a  bottle  of  soda-water.  Drawing  oil  from  the  rock  may 
be  compared  to  drawing  beer  from  the  barrel.  The  barrel 
is  placed  in  the  cellar  and  a  bar  pump  inserted — at  first  the 
liquor  flows  freely  through  the  tube  without  using  the  pump, 
but  presently  the  gas  weakens  and  the  pump  is  called  into 


FLOODED  TEREITOEY.  III.  263 

requisition ;  and  finally  the  gas  pressure  in  the  barrel  be- 
comes so  weak  that  a  vent  hole  must  be  made  to  admit  at- 
mospheric pressure  before  the  barrel  can  be  completely 
emptied  even  by  the  pump. 

§  476.  The  flooding  of  an  oil  district  is  generally  mewed 
as  a  great  calamity,  yet  it  may  be  questioned  whether 
a  larger  amount  of  oil  can  not  be  drawn  from  the  rocks  in 
that  way  than  by  any  other,  for  it  is  certain  that  all  the  oil 
cannot  be  drawn  from  the  reservoir  without  the  admission 
of  something  to  take  its  place. 

If  one  company  owned  all  the  wells  drawing  upon  a  pool, 
and  had  accurate  records  of  the  depths  and  characteristics 
of  the  oil  producing  stratum  in  each  well,  it  is  quite  pos- 
sible that  some  system  might  be  devised  by  which  water 
could  be  let  down  through  certain  shafts,  and  the  oil  forced 
towards  certain  other  shafts  wrhere  the  pumps  were  kept  in 
motion,  and  thus  the  rocks  be  completely  voided  of  oil  and 
left  full  of  water.  As  it  is  however,  no  systematized  plan 
of  action  can  be  adopted.  The  careless  handling  of  one 
well,  by  which  water  is  let  down  to  the  oil  rock,  may  spoil 
several  others  belonging  to  different  parties.  A  clashing  of 
interests  at  once  arises  and  is  likely  to  result  in  disaster 
to  the  whole  district. 

§  477.  The  early  operators  on  Oil  creek  knew  nothing 
about ' '  casing. ' '  Wells  were  drilled  * '  wet ' '  no  effort  being 
made  to  shut  but  the  surface  water  ;  consequently  when  oil 
was  struck,  it  met  a  static  pressure  of  water  corresponding 
to  the  depth  of  the  well.  In  new  and  shallow  territory  the 
pressure  in  the  rock  was  sufficient  to  hold  the  water  in  check 
and  prevent  it  from  entering  the  oil  sand  and  sometimes  it 
had  force  enough  to  eject  a  column  of  water  from  the  hole 
and  flow  on  steadily  for  some  time  in  defiance  of  it.  But 
as  developments  progressed  and  oil  currents  began  to  b3 
diverted  towards  numerous  outlets  through  pumping  and 
flowing  wells,  it  often  very  naturally  occurred  where  the 
circumstances  favored  it,  that  this  column  of  water  in  a  well 
just  completed  would  force  itself  into  the  oil  sand,  driving 
the  oil  before  it,  and  quickly  flood  a  neighboring  well. 
When  the  new  well  was  tubed  and  seed-bagged  it  frequently 


264  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

took  several  days  pumping  to  relieve  the  sandrock  of  the 
water  thus  forced  into  it,  and  regain  the  oil.  These  troubles 
increased  more  and  more  as  territory  became  older  and  the 
pressure  of  gas  in  the  rock  decreased  through  the  removal 
of  large  bodies  of  oil.  At  that  time  the  seed-bag  which 
prevented  the  surface  water  from  passing  down,  was  affixed 
to  the  tubing,  and  any  difficulty  in  the  working  chamber  or 
valves  which  necessitated  the  withdrawal  of  the  tubing,  (and 
these  contingencies  occurred  frequently,)  involved  the  let- 
ting in  again  of  the  surface  waters  upon  the  oil  rock.  Fre- 
quent repetitions  of  this  operation  finally  brought  ruin  not 
only  on  the  well  itself  but  on  others  in  the  vicinity.  In 
the  abandonment  of  a  well  thus  spoilt,  or  of  one  which  had 
been  drilled  and  proved  unproductive,  no  care  was  taken 
to  prevent  the  water  from  entering  the  oil  rock.  Indeed  it 
seemed  to  be  a  satisfaction  to  those  who  had  been  unsuc- 
cessful in  their  ventures,  to  spoil  if  possible  the  good  wells 
of  the  more  fortunate.  From  these  causes  it  happened  that 
nearly  all  the  farms  along  oil  creek  were  very  much  injured 
by  water  before  the  true  situation  of  affairs  was  rightly 
understood. 

§  478.  Small  casing  («?£")  was  first  introduced  in  1865. 
This  held  the  seed  bag  on  its  lower  end  and  extended  down 
below  the  fresh  water  veins,  so  that  the  tubing  could  be  in- 
serted inside  of  it  and  withdrawn  at  pleasure  without  letting 
in  the  water  (see  Plate  XIV).  Many  of  the  old  wells  were 
then  cased — the  abandoned  holes  were  filled  up  or  stopped., 
with  a  wooden  plug  above  the  oil  sand  to  prevent  the  further 
admission  of  water — large  pumps  were  set  in  motion  to  ex- 
haust the  water  and  after  great  expenditures  and  persistent 
effort  some  tracts  were  partially  reclaimed  and  certain 
wells  yielded  oil  freely,  for  a  time.  But  conflicting  interests 
and  a  want  of  cooperation  among  the  many  well  owners 
prevented  systematic  work,  the  flood  consequently  again 
became  unmanageable,  and  large  areas  oi;  old  oil  territory 
were  finally  abandoned. 

§  479.  The  manner  in  which  water  invades  and  takes 
possession  of  the  oil  sands,  has  created  a  great  deal  of 
discussion  among  well  owners  and  others.  Some  producers 


FLOODED  TERRITORY.  III.  265 

have  imagined  they  so  thoroughly  understood  the  subject 
that  they  could  go  ahead  and  put  down  new  wells  or  operate 
old  ones  in  flooded  territory,  in  such  a  way  as  to  catch  the 
oil  driven  before  the  water- wave  and  make  a  profitable  busi- 
ness of  it ;  but  they  have  generally  been  convinced  by  ex- 
perience if  they  persisted  in  their  operations  long  enough, 
that  success  in  this  kind  of  oil  producing  might  be  attributed 
to  chance  quite  as  reasonably  as  to  good  judgment. 

It  is  an  easy  thing  to  theorize  as  to  how  the  water  cur- 
rents might  conduct  themselves,  but  quite  another  to  show 
precisely  how  they  do  act,  for  we  can  only  have,  at  best,  a 
very  imperfect  knowledge  of  the  constitution  of  the  sand- 
rock,  and  therefore  cannot  foresee  all  the  contingencies  de- 
pendent upon  details  of  structure,  which  may  arise  to 
thwart  the  most  shrewd  and  judicious  calculations. 

§  480.  In  judging  of  the  probable  effects  of  the  introduc- 
tion of  'Water  into  any  particular  oil  district  several  things 
are  to  be  considered. 

(1)  The  time  of  flooding — whether  early  in  the  progress 
of  development,  while  yet  a  large  percentage  of  oil  remains 
unexhausted,  or  at  a  later  period  after  the  supply  has  suf- 
fered from  long  continued  depletion.  (2)  The  structure  of 
the  rode — whether  regular  and  homogeneous  throughout, 
or  composed  of  fine  sand  interbedding  connected  and  irregu- 
lar layers  of  gravel,  sometimes  lying  near  the  top  and  at 
others  near  the  bottom.  (3)  The  shape  of  the  area  being 
flooded.  (4)  The  position  of  the  point  at  loJiich  water  is 
admitted,  in  relation  to  the  location  of  the  surrounding 
wells  still  pumping  oil  (5)  The  height  (which  governs  the 
pressure)  of  the  column  of  water  obtaining  admittance. 
(6)  The  duration  of  the  water  supply. 

It  will  readily  be  seen  that  a  temporary  flooding  in  com- 
paratively fresh  territory,  such  as  frequently  occurred  in 
early  days  along  Oil  creek  from  the  drilling  of  new  wells 
without  casing  or  the  overhauling  of  old  ones  where  the 
seed  bag  was  attached  to  the  tubing  in  the  primitive  way, 
must  necessarily  be  quite  a  different  affair  from  one  caused 
by  a  permanent  deluge  through  unplugged  and  abandoned 
wells  in  nearly  exhausted  territory. 


266  III.   KEPOET  OF  PKOGKESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

In  the  former  case  the  flood  may  be  checked  before  much 
water  lias  accumulated  in  the  rock,  and  then  the  oil  flow  can 
be  reclaimed  after  a  few  days  of  persistent  pumping ;  in 
the  latter  the  recovery  of  oil  is  very  uncertain,  because  from 
its  long  continued  extraction  a  greater  capacity  has  been 
given  to  the  rocks  for  storing  water,  and  this  being  sup- 
plied from  scattered  and  obscure  sources,  there  is  little 
probability  that  it  can  be  shut  oif,  although  the  most  thor- 
ough and  systematic  attempts  may  be  made  to  check  it. 

§  481.  A  good  illustration  of  the  action  of  a  temporary 
flood  in  comparatively  new  territory  was  furnished  years 
ago  by  a  well  on  Oil  creek.  It  was  drilled  in  close  prox- 
imity to  large  producing  wells,  and  seems  to  have  pierced 
the  oil  rock  at  a  point  where  the  water  let  in  by  drilling 
and  overhauling  surrounding  wells  had  accumulated  to  the 
exclusion  of  the  oil  originally  stored  there  as  well  as  in 
other  portions  of  the  rock.  On  starting  the  pump  nothing 
but  water  was  obtained.  Day  after  day  the  machinery  was 
kept  in  motion,  but  no  improvement  appeared.  All  but 
the  owner  rated  the  well  as  a  total  failure  and  he  came  to 
be  looked  upon  as  a  man  with  a  great  deal  of  faith  but  very 
little  judgment.  The  pumpers  at  adjoining  wells  delighted 
to  annoy  him  and  thought  it  a  good  joke  to  send  every 
traveler  who  inquired  for  a  drink  of  water,  to  the  "water 
well"  as  they  had  named  it.  Still  the  owner  kept  pump- 
ing night  and  day,  and  at  the  end  of  six  weeks  the  Avater 
exhausted,  oil  immediately  appeared  in  large  -quantities 
and  the  well  proved  to  be  an  exceptionally  remunerative 
one.  After  flowing  and  pumping  for  a  long  time,  however, 
I  believe  it  again  became  flooded,  when  the  surrounding  ter- 
ritory had  been  nearly  drained  of  oil,  and  much  uncontroll- 
able water  had  found  access  to  the  rock,  and  then  a  large 
amount  of  time  and  money  were  fruitlessly  expended  in 
trying  to  regain  the  oil. 

§  482.  The  following  sketch  (Plate  XXXV)  was  made  from 
the  records  of  three  oil  wells  at  Triumph,  Warren  county : 
It  probably  exhibits  the  general  structure  of  the  oil  sands 
not  only  at  that  point  but  in  many  other  parts  of  the  oil 
district,  and  it  will  serve  to  show  on  a  small  scale  how  the 


Plate  XXXV. 


III.  267 


268  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

introduction  of  water  at  various  points  might  affect  the 
flow  of  oil  in  the  several  wells  drawing  from  a  deposit. 
In  No.  773  a  pocket  of  pebbles  lies  near  the  top  of  the  rock, 
where  only  fine  grained  sand  was  found  in  Nos.  769  and  776. 
Suppose  No.  773  had  not  been  drilled  until  Nos.  769  and  776 
had  partially  exhausted  the  oil  and  been  abandoned,  letting 
the  water  down  into  the  oil  sand.  The  heavy  gravity  of 
water  would  cause  it  to  seek  the  lower  portion  of  the  peb- 
ble rock,  thus  lifting  the  oil  and  gas  remaining  in  the  rock 
and  compressing  them  in  the  upper  parts.  Thus  the  peb- 
ble pocket  A  would  be  filled  with  oil  and  gas,  for  by  reason 
of  its  high  position  and  impervious  surroundings  it  had  no 
lateral  escapes  for  its  .contents  when  the  water  line  rose 
above  a  certain  point.  If  the  body  of  oil  contained  in  A, 
when  thus  cut  off  from  escape,  had  already  been  compressed 
to  a  sufficient  degree  to  withstand  the  static  pressure  of 
the  column  of  water  operating  upon  it,  the  water  could  have 
no  further  effect,  but  must  pass  on  to  points  of  less  resist- 
ance, but  if  they  had  not  yet  been  sufficiently  compressed,  the 
water  line  would  rise  in  the  arched  basin  until  the  proper 
compression  had  been  accomplished.  If  now,  after  the 
lower  part  of  the  rock  has  been  flooded,  well  No.  773  be 
drilled,  the  pool  of  oil  stored  in  pocket  A  will  yield  freely 
until  it  is  exhausted  and  the  water  fills  the  rock,  when  it 
will  be  useless  to  expect  a  further  supply. 

§  483.  *  When  water  is  let  down  into  the  center  of  a  dis- 
trict which  has  been  rapidly  drilled  and  partially  ex- 
hausted, at  it  was,  for  instance,  at  Pithole  City  in  1865, 
the  effect  must  be  to  drive  the  oil  remaining  in  the  rock  in 
all  directions.  Not  only  will  it  force  down  the  dip  of  the 
strata  (the  direction  which  some  assert  it  must  always 
take),  but  up  the  dip  also  ;  for  being  supplied  from  sources 
several  hundred  feet  above  the  oil-sand,  a  slight  dip  in  it 
of  15  or  20  feet  to  the  mile  practically  amounts  to  nothing. 
It  must  naturally  travel  the  fastest  towards  the  points  of 
least  resistance.  If  the  district  be  an  elongated  one,  with 
the  pebble  deposits  lying  in  beds,  as  is  usually  the  case, 
and  a  line  of  wells  be  pumping,  up  the  dip,  or  above  the 
point  at  which  water  is  admitted,  and  none  below,  thus 


FLOODED  TERRITORY.  III.  269 

creating  a  draft  in  the  up-dip  direction,  these  higher  wells 
will  be  attacked  one  after  the  other  as  the  water  wave  ad- 
vances, just  as  surely  as  if  the  conditions  in  relation  to  slope 
were  reversed.  But  as  the  flood  advances,  and  well  after 
well  is  reached  in  succession  and  flooded,  it  must  naturally 
sometimes  happen  that  in  consequence  of  the  irregular 
structure  and  geographical  outlines  of  the  rock  and  the 
accidental  locations  of  the  wells  drawing  from  the  deposit, 
that  stray  marginal  pools  of  oil  will  be  forced  out  into  the 
pebble  pockets  not  yet  drilled  upon,  and  from  which  it  can 
find  no  outlet,  as  illustrated  in  the  preceding  sketch. 

§  484.  Two  or  three  such  pools  containing  a  large  amount 
of  oil  have  been  discovered  on  the  outskirts  of  Pithole  since 
the  central  district  was  flooded,  and  several  others  also  bor- 
dering on  Oil  creek.  That  they  were  pools  stored  and  held 
in  place  by  the  flooding  of  the  central  district,  was  shown  by 
the  fact  that  when  oil  failed  in  the  first  well,  water  imme- 
diately came  in,  and  the  wave  followed  on  from  well  to 
well  in  regular  succession,  as  if  radiating  from  a  central 
source. 

§  485.  The  first  intimation  of  the  flooding  of  a  district 
is  given  by  an  increased  production  from  the  wells  affected 
by  it.  Old  wells,  without  any  observable  cause,  improve 
gradually,  running  up  from  five  barrels  per  day  to  ten 
or  twenty,  or  even  fifty.  After  pumping  in  this  way  for 
some  time  the  oil  quickly  fails  and  they  yield  only  a  few 
barrels  of  salt  or  brackish  water.  As  the  wave  moves  on, 
the  wells  in  advance,  one  after  another,  are  affected  in  the 
same  way.  In  some  districts  the  movement  is  quite  rapid, 
and  wells  are  invaded  and  "watered  out"  in  quick  succes- 
sion ;  in  others  it  is  so  slow  that  large  quantities  of  oil  are 
obtained  from  those  which  are  favorably  located  to  receive 
a  "benefit."  Flooding  a  well  is  sometimes  a  very  profit- 
able way  of  closing  up  its  career,  inasmuch  as  it  thus  yields 
more  in  a  few  months  than  it  otherwise  would  in  years, 
and  when  the  water  reaches  it  the  owner  knows  at  once 
what  it  betokens  and  stops  work,  thus  saving  the  time  and 
money  usually  expended  in  fruitless  efforts  to  reclaim  a 
well  failing  through  natural  decline. 


270  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Origin  of  petroleum. — A  chapter  of  queries. 

§  486.  "  What  is  your  theory  concerning  the  formation 
ff  petroleum?"  is  one  of  the  first  questions  asked  of  the 
geologist  when  matters  connected  with  the  oil  regions  are 
mentioned,  and  the  question  is  put  as  if  it  were  one  on  a 
simple  subject,  surrounded  by  no  obscure  and  perplexing 
conditions  and  therefore  easily  answered  by  any  person  who 
might  be  conversant  with  the  general  structure  and  charac- 
teristics of  the  rocks  containing  oil  and  the  methods  of  its 
procurement. 

A  superficial  or  partial  examination  of  the  facts  connected 
with  its  origin  has  led  to  the  publication  of  various  and  con- 
flicting theories  regarding  it.  Many  of  these  are  evidently 
based  upon  insufficient  hypothetical  premises,  and  we  ap- 
prehend that  even  the  most  plausible  one  of  them  now  in 
vogue  will  need  much  modification  as  our  knowledge  on  the 
subject  becomes  more  comprehensive. 

When  we  have  discovered  the  place  of  its  nativity,  ascer- 
tained the  horizon  and  conditions  of  its  birth,  obtained  an 
approximate  idea  of  its  age,  studied  its  constitution  and 
habits,  so  to  speak,  and  become  in  like  manner  familiar  with 
its  cognate  associate  gas,  then  we  may  possibly  be  able  to 
propose  a  tenable  theory  to  explain  the  genesis  of  petroleum. 
But  at  present,  with  all  these  points  in  dispute  or  ill  under- 
stood, we  must  treat  the  question  above  propounded  as  one 
which  may  be  discussed  but  cannot  be  satisfactorily  an- 
swered. 

§  487.  Tliere  are  many  grades  of  petroleum  even  in  the 
comparatively  thin  band  of  Pennsylvania  oil  rocks.  They 
may  be  readily  distinguished  one  from  the  other  by  marked 
variations  in  gravity,  color,  smell,  and  the  manner  in  which 
they  are  affected  by  heat  and  cold.  Have  they  all  one  conv 


ORIGIN  OF  PETROLEUM.  III.  271 

mon  origin  or  are  they  the  products  of  different  ages  ?  Do 
they  vary  in  composition  and  character  because  of  the  strati- 
graph  ical  position  and  chemical  constituents  of  the  several 
rocks  in  which  they  are  stored,  or  do  they  vary  on  account 
of  local  peculiarities  obtaining  in  successive  ages,  in  the 
growth  of  the  assemblages  of  marine  flora  and  fauna  from 
which  they  are  supposed  by  some  to  have  been  derived  ? 

§  488.  If  the  originating  organic  matter  has  been  con- 
verted into  oil  at  different  periods  during  the  earth's  his- 
tory, corresponding  chronologically  with  the  deposition  of 
the  sands  in  which  the  oils  are  found,  what  effect  has  this 
difference  in  time  of  birth  had  upon  the  character  of  the  sev- 
eral oils  since  their  generation  ? 

In  view  of  the  universal  law  of  mutability,  to  which  both 
organic  and  inorganic  matter  is  subject,  the  law  of  growth, 
or  progressive  development  from  generation  to  maturity,  of 
decay,  or  gradual  decomposition  from  maturity  to  dissolu- 
tion, should  we  not  expect  to  find  certain  distinguishing 
characteristics  in  the  several  oils,  (if  they  were  formed  at 
widely  separated  periods  of  time,)  from  which  some  idea  of 
their  relative  ages  might  be  obtained  ? 

But  there  are  so  many  unknown  factors  involved  in  a  solu- 
tion of  these  problems  that  we  must  be  content  to  work 
slowly  and — wait. 

§  489.  The  fundamental  questions  to  be  answered  seem 
to  be  these :  From  what  source  does  petroleum  originate  and 
when  was  it  formed  ?  and  a  consideration  of  them  involves 
a  review  of  two  of  the  most  popular  theories  of  the  day,  the 
one  claiming  that  it  has  been  elaborated  by  nature  from 
materials  contained  in  the  rock  where  it  is  now  found,  that 
the  oil  producing  rock  is  the  parent  rock ;  the  other,  that  it 
is  the  product  of  gas  originating  in  much  deeper  strata,  the 
sandstones  being  merely  condensing  reservoirs  for  its  stor- 
age. 

There  are  strong  arguments  in  support 'of  both  theories 
and  they  each  have  their  earnest  and  distinguished  advo- 
cates, but  it  is  not  an  easy  matter  to  prove  either  the  one 
of  them  or  the  other  to  be  universally  applicable  to  facts  as 
we  find  them.  The  probabilities  are  that  we  shall  discover, 


272  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

when  the  subject  is  more  thoroughly  understood,  that  there 
is  what  might  be  called  an  indigenous  oil  in  conformity  to 
the  one  theory  and  an  exotic  oil  in  agreement  with  the 
other. 

Genesis  of  petroleum  in  the  sandrocTcs. 

§  490.  Reviewing  the  facts  connected  with  the  produc- 
tion of  oil  from  the  Venango  group,  we  find  that  the  largest 
wells  are  those  which  are  sunk  through  the  coarsest  part  of 
the  oil  bearing  sandrock.  The  drillings  show  nothing  but 
coarse  sand  and  pebbles.  Pieces  of  the  unpulverized  rock 
one  or  two  cubic  inches  in  bulk  are  often  brought  up  after 
torpedoing,  but  nothing  can  be  detected  in  them  that  could 
possibly  originate  petroleum.  Could  a  rock  of  this  charac- 
ter have  originally  contained  a  quantity  of  organic  matter 
sufficient  to  yield  a  cubic  foot  of  oil  to  every  ten  or  twelve 
(mine  feet  of  rock,  and  these  organic  remains  be  so  com- 
pletely converted  into  oil  as  to  leave  no  residual  trace  of 
their  existence  ?  Could  so  large  a  quantity  of  organic  mat- 
ter be  held  by  such  loose  sands  during  the  slow  processes  of 
their  deposition,  without  decomposition  and  waste?  and  if 
so  held,  wJien  was  the  organic  tissue  thus  preserved  con- 
verted into  oil  ?  It  could  not  have  been  while  the  sands 
were  lying  at  sea  level  as  sand  beaches  exposed  to  atmos- 
pheric influences,  for  then  the  oil  would  have  been  vola- 
tilized and  dissipated  in  air.  Neither  could  it  have  been 
while  the  sands  were  in  contact  with  the  water,  (if  they 
were  formed  beneath  water  level,)  for  then  the  oil  would 
have  risen  to  the  surface  and  floated  away  as  fast  as  gener- 
ated. It  must  have  been  then  at  a  period  subsequent  to 
this. 

But  if  no  oil  was  stored  in  the  sand  beds  as  they  slowly 
sank  to  receive  the  succeeding  deposits  upon  their  backs, 
the  interspaces  between  the  grains  of  sand  and  pebbles  which 
nowr  contain  oil,  must  have  been  filled  with  salt  water,  for 
they  could  not  go  down  unoccupied,  and  the  sand-beds  must 
also  have  contained  within  themselves  large  quantities  of 
organic  matter,  which  sooner  or  later,  when  the  conditions 
became  favorable,  was  to  be  converted  into  oil. 


ORIGIN  OF  PETROLEUM.  III.  273 

§  491.  What  are  the  requisite  conditions  to  convert  this 
organic  matter  into  oil  ?  Presumably  a  certain  degree  of 
heat  and  pressure  to  be  attained  only  when  the  strata  have 
reached  a  proper  depth  below  the  surface  or  ocean  level. 
At  what  depth  this  horizon  which  may  be  termed  the  plane 
of  spontaneous  distillation  may  lie,  we  do  not  know,  and 
it  is_  immaterial  to  our  present  purpose  that  it  should  be 
definitely  fixed.  Wherever  it  may  be,  however,  it  must  be 
reached  and  occupied  successively  by  each  one  of  the  oil 
producing  sands  in  order  that  the  organic  matter  from  which 
the  oil  is  to  be  evolved,  may  be  subjected  to  the  proper  con- 
ditions and  the  transformation  effected. 

We  will  suppose  that  the  Venango  Third  oil  sand  has 
gradually  sunk  as  the  sediments  accumulated  above  it,  un- 
til it  has  arrived  at  this  oil  making  horizon.  Spontaneous 
distillation  now  ensues.  The  salt  water  contained  in  the 
sand  is  partially  absorbed  or  displaced  in  the  process,  and 
the  stratum  is  charged  with  oil.  But  the  measures  still 
continue  to  sink  and  other  rocks  are  deposited  above  ;  the 
Second  oil  sand,  First  oil  sand,  Pithole  grit,  Serai  Con- 
glomerate and  Malioning  sandstone,  must  all,  one  after  the 
other,  have  been  brought  down  to  the  oil  making  horizon, 
according  to  this  hypothesis — for  they  all  now  contain  oil 
in  one  place  or  another. 

The  vertical  distance  between  the  Third  oil  sand  and 
Malioning  sandstone  as  shown  on  generalized  section  Plate 
XI, is  about  1550  ft.  Therefore,  when  the  Mahoning  sand- 
stone occupied  the  plane  of  spontaneous  distillation,  the 
Third  oil  sand  must  have  been  1550  ft.  below  it,  and  sub- 
ject, by  reason  of  this  additional  depth,  to  a  degree  of  heat 
much  greater  than  that  of  the  horizon  in  which  the  oil  con- 
tained in  it  was  formed. 

,  §  492.  Supposing  all  the  oils  in  the  several  sands  to  have 
been  identical  in  character  when  first  formed  as  they  passed 
through  the  oil  making  horizon  ;  must  not  that  in  the  TJiird 
sand  at  least,  have  undergone  a  great  change  during  the 
immense  period  occupied  in  slowly  sinking  1550  ft.  while 
the  sand  beds  above  it  were  being  successively  stored  with 
oil — and  especially  so,  when  to  the  changes  incident  to  age 
18  III. 


274  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

must  also  be  added  the  changes  wrought  by  chemical  action 
under  such  altered  conditions  and  so  considerable  an  in- 
crease of  temperature.  Would  not  the  increase  of  heat  in 
deeper  horizons  have  had  a  tendency  to  reduce  the  gravity 
of  the  oil,  so  that  we  should  now  find  the  Third  sand  oil 
heavier  than  that  of  the  Second*  and  the  Second  heavier 
than  the  First,  whereas  we  now  find  it  in  exactly  the  reverse 
order  \ 

§  493.  The  depth  of  sedimentary  strata  known  to  have 
been  deposited  above  it,  shows  that  the  Third  oil  sand 
must  have  been  at  some  time  at  least  3000  ft.  below  ocean 
level.  It  now  lies  at  Tidioute  1000  ft.  above  this  datum  plane. 
How  much  deeper  it  may  have  sunk,  or  how  much  higher 
it  may  have  been  elevated,  we  do  not  know.  If  now  the 
oil  was  formed  during  its  descent  while  passing  through  the 
oil  making  horizon  (and  AVC  can  imagine  no  other  point  or 
time  at  which  it  could  have  been  formed,  according  to  the 
hypothesis  under  consideration)  and  the  stratum  after  being 
charged  with  oil  slowly  sank  1550'  as  argued  above ;  then 
came  up  again,  it  may  be  slowly  or  it  may  be  quickly, 
several  thousand  feet,  who  can  imagine  the  changes  the  oil 
would  be  likely  to  undergo  during  all  these  varying  circum- 
stances of  depression,  elevation,  temperature  and  time. 

§  494.  And  then  what  further  mutations  may  be  supposed 
to  have  taken  place  in  such  variable  and  volatile  hydro- 
carbons as  these  during  the  long  periods  intervening  be- 
tween the  post  carboniferous  uplift  and  the  present  time, 
while  the  sands  containing  them  have  been  lying  in  various 
positions  in  relation  to  surface  erosion,  some  of  them  being 
far  above  sea  level  and  some  below ;  having  lost  their  origi- 
nal horizontality,  and  being  in  consequence,  more  or  less 
affected  in  some  localities,  by  underground  drainage,  local 
escapes  of  gas  and  oil  at  the  surface  and  accessions  of  sur- 
face water. 

We  are  hardly  prepared  to  assign  so  great  an  age  to 
petroleum  as  the  above  view  of  its  formation  would  require ; 
and  yet,  if  it  is  generated  in  the  sandrock,  from  organic 
matter  intermixed  and  buried  with  the  sand,  we  can  im- 
.agine  no  more  probable  sequence  of  events  than  those  out- 


ORIGIN  OF  PETROLEUM.  Ill,  275 

lined  above,  by  which,  to  arrive  at  some  idea  of  its  age  and 
the  possible  horizon  of  its  birth. 

§  495.  So  far  we  have  spoken  only  of  the  Venango  oil 
sands  and  those  above  them  ;  and  if  we  are  already  amazed 
at  the  immense  age  of  their  respective  oil  deposits,  as  meas- 
ured by  the  theory  under  review — and  are  inclined  to  doubt 
whether  oil  could  be  preserved  unchanged  for  such  incal- 
culable ages  in  rocks  exposed  to  such  vicissitudes  as  these 
have  experienced,  our  amazement  will  only  increase  if  we 
go  on  and  apply  the  same  line  of  argument  to  the  Oil  meas- 
ures of  Warren  and  Bradford  which  extend  down  more 
than  1000  ft.  below  them,  and  whose  oils  must  therefore  be 
much  older. 

§  496.  Further  ; — It  is  evident  that  an  oil  producing  rock 
of  the  character  we  are  speaking  of,  could  only  be  formed 
by  the  conjoint  action  of  two  classes  of  widely  differing 
physical  agencies — one  to  furnish  the  organic  matter,  the 
other  the  inorganic.  If  only  sand  and  pebbles  were  de- 
posited in  any  place,  they  could  make  no  oil.  Sea  weeds 
and  mollusks  must  live  and  flourish  in  great  abundance  on 
the  forming  sand  beds,  or  be  within  reach  of  the  waves  and 
currents  to  be  brought  in  and  deposited  with  them — other- 
wise the  materials  for  generating  oil  would  be  wanting.  It 
is  reasonable  to  infer  that  these  two  necessary  conditions 
did  not  everywhere  conjointly  prevail ;  that  in  some  locali- 
ties sand  was  deposited  without  organic  matter  and  in  others 
organic  matter  without  sand  ;  and  that  consequently  we 
should  now  find  considerable  areas  of  sandrock  barren  of 
oil.  In  that  case,  no  doubt,  great  irregularity  would  be 
noticed  in  the  distribution  of  these  barren  spots  through- 
out the  oil  producing  sand  sheets.  Each  stratum  would 
have  a  structure  in  that  respect  peculiarily  its  own,  regard- 
less of  the  local  variations  of  the  one  below  it  or  the  one 
above;  but  the  same  general  features  observed  in  the  dis- 
tribution of  the  productive  and  non-productive  spots  in  one 
stratum,  ought  to  obtain  in  the  others  also. 

Thus  if  the  Third  sand  produces  oil  almost  universally 
wherever  its  characteristic  oil  bearing  rock  is  found  ;  then 
the  Second  sand  should  in  like  manner  produce  oil  wher- 


276  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

ever  Us  characteristic  oil  bearing  rock  is  found ;  and  so  on 
with  all  the  other  oil  sands  above.  Or,  in  other  words,  if 
oil  is  generated  solely  from  materials  deposited  cotempora- 
neously  with  and  contained  in  the  rock  where  it  is  now 
found,  there  can  be  no  reason  assigned  why  there  should 
not  be  good  oil  deposits,  scattered  over  the  whole  area  of 
one  sand  as  well  as  of  another,  wherever  the  typical  oil  bear- 
ing rock  is  well  developed,  regardless  of  the  measures  above 
or  below  it ;  no  reason  why,  all  other  things  being  equal, 
the  Conglomerate  and  Mountain  sands  should  not  produce 
oil  as  freely  where  the  Venango  group  lies  below  them  as 
where  it  does  not ;  no  reason  why  the  First  and  Second  oil 
sands  should  not  produce  their  normal  quantities  as  well 
where  underlaid  by  the  Third  sand  as  where  the  latter  is 
wanting,  or  imperfect. 

§  497.  Now  what  do  we  find  the  facts  to  be.  Where  the 
Third  sand  of  the  Venango  group  is  well  developed  it 
almost  universally  contains  oil  in  one  or  the  other  of  its 
three  or  four  divisions,  and  where  these  productive  mem- 
bers spread  over  a  wide  area  as  they  do  in  parts  of  Venango, 
Clarion  and  Butler  counties,  the  sands  above  them,  although 
they  are  frequently  of  excellent  quality  and  exhibit  every 
characteristic  of  the  oil  producing  portions  as  found  else- 
where, yield  scarcely  a  show  of  oil.  Yet  the  Second  sand 
produces  oil  in  large  quantities  in  many  places  skirting  the 
edges  of  the  Third  sand,  where  the  latter  is  of  inferior 
quality  or  wanting — the  First  sand  produces  oil  in  similar 
situations  over  an  inferior  Second  and  Third  sand,  or 
where  one  or  both  of  them  are  wanting — the  Mountain 
sands  produce  oil  in  some  localities,  but  only  where-  the 
/  Venango  group  in  its  integrity  is  wanting — all  of  which 

(  circumstances  lead  to  the  inference,  that  softiehow,  the  ab- 

V  sence  or  presence  of  the  lower  sands  exercise  a  controlling 
influence  upon  the  productiveness  of  those  above  them, 

/  which  should  not  be  the  case  if  the  oil  in  each  rock  was 
generated  in  the  rock  where  found  from  organic  matter 

I    interbedded  in  the  stratum  itself. 


ORIGIN  OF  PETROLEUM.  III.  277 

Genesis  of  petroleum  from  condensed  gas. 

§  498.  The  hypothesis,  that  petroleum  is  the  product  of 
condensed  gas  evolved  from  carbonaceous  shale  lying  at  a 
greater  or  less  depth  below  the  oil  sands,  while,  as  before 
intimated,  not  yet  sufficiently  understood  to  claim  the  place 
of  a  demonstrable  theory,  seems  nevertheless  not  to  be  open 
to  so  many  cogent  objections  as  the  one  just  considered. 

As  generally  understood  at  present,  this  hypothesis  also 
requires  organic  growth  to  furnish  materials  for  generating 
the  hydro -carbons,  and  mechanical  agents  to  prepare  the 
sand-bed  reservoirs  to  collect  and  retain  them  ;  but  the 
operations  of  the  two  classes  of  agencies  need  not  neces- 
sarily have  been  synchronous,  nor  is  it  requisite  that  the 
areas  primarily  occupied  by  them  should  have  been  geo- 
graphically co-extensive.  The  carbonaceous  gas-produc- 
ing materials  may  have  been  brought  into  the  Appalachian 
basin  from  various  sources,  at  different  times,  and  by  many 
channels,  long  anterior  to  the  deposition  of  the  sand-beds. 
But  they  only  become  oil  producing  through  the  superven- 
tion of  the  sandstones ;  therefore,  to  secure  this  end,  both 
carbonaceous  shale  and  sandstone  must  underlie  a  produc- 
tive oil  field,  for  if  the  shale  be  wanting,  no  gas  can  come 
up  for  condensation  in  the  sandrocks,  if  the  sandrocks  are 
wanting,  there  being  no  reservoirs  to  receive  and  condense 
the  gas,  it  continues  on  upward  and  escapes  imperceptibly 
as  gas  at  the  surface. 

§  499.  When  we  reflect  that  large  quantities  of  organic 
matter  were  stored  in  the  limestones  and  shales  of  the  im- 
mensely thick  beds  of  the  Silurian  formation,  that  they 
were  augmented  in  a  later  period  by  the  contents  of  other 
rich  carbonaceous  deposits  of  Lower  Devonian  age,  that 
these  all  now  lie  far  below  the  Oil  sands,  and  that  we  may 
reasonably  suppose  many  of  them  are  now  or  have  been, 
buried  at  a  depth  which  would  subject  them  to  a  degree  of 
heat  competent  to  all  the  requirements  of  spontaneous  dis- 
tilliation  of  gas,  we  cannot  but  admit,  in  view  of  the  known 
intimate  relationship  and  association  of  gas  and  oil,  that 
the  hypothesis  of  the  formation  of  petroleum  from  this 
source  is  worthy  at  least  of  a  candid  consideration. 


278  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

The  great  bituminous  coal  basin  of  western  Pennsylva- 
nia and  Ohio,  under  which  the  Silurian  rocks  plunge  from 
the  east  and  northeast  to  appear  again  as  they  come  up  and 
fold  over  the  Cincinnati  anticlinal  on  the  west,  seems  to  be, 
so  to  speak,  one  vast  cauldron  filled  with  deeply  buried  car- 
bonaceous matter  subjected  to  great  heat,  and  therefore 
constantly  generating  gas. 

It  may  be  doubted  whether  a  well  was  ever  drilled  in  all 
this  area,  where  gas  was  not  obtained,  or  at  least  where  it 
might  not  have  been  found  if  drilling  had  been  continued 
to  a  proper  depth. 

§  500.  It  is  true  that  in  many  wells  the  volume  of  gas  is 
small  and  sometimes  almost  imperceptible,  and  this  fact 
has  been  brought  forward  as  an  argument  against  the  theory 
of  a  general  diffusion  of  gas  throughout  the  lower  measures, 
traveling  from  its  assumed  source  in  deeper  rocks  through 
every  available  avenue  to  find  an  exit  at  the  surface. 

But  let  us  examine  this  point — and  to  illustrate,  suppose 
a  gas  holder  with  an  unlimited  supply  of  gas  under  a  con- 
stant pressure  of  three  or  four  hundred  pounds  to  the  square 
inch,  to  be  buried  thousands  of  feet  beneath  the  surface. 
From  this  reservoir  let  numerous  pipes  varying  in  size  from 
one  sixteenth  of  an  inch  to  three  inches  in  diameter,  run 
up  in  branching  and  tortuous  lines  toward  the  surface.  If 
now,  in  drilling  an  oil  well  one  of  the  smaller  pipes  should 
be  tapped  at  a  depth  of  five  hundred  or  a  thousand  feet, 
the  small  volume  of  gas  emitted,  mixing  with  the  air  in  an 
ordinary  well  shaft,  would  make  but  little  show  at  the  sur- 
face— we  should  have  a  well  with  "no  gas."  But  if  one  of 
the  larger  leads  were  tapped  a  lively  gas-flow  would  at  once 
ensue.  Yet,  here  both  leads  come  from  the  same  source 
and  vent  under  the  same  normal  pressure  ;  and  although 
the  different  measures  of  friction  belonging  to  pipes  of 
large  are  small  diameters  would  exercise  some  influence, 
still  for  all  practical  purposes  we  may  consider  cause  and 
effect  as  operating  the  same  in  one  pipe  as  the  other,  the 
only  marked  difference  being  in  the  amount  of  product; 
and  even  this  difference,  in  so  far  as  it  relates  to  their  ca- 
pacity for  filling  limited  reservoirs,  is  equalized  by  time, 


ORIGIN  OF  PETROLEUM.  III.  279 

for  a  gasometer  which  would  be  filled  by  the  larger  pipe  in 
a  day,  would  as  surely  be  filled  by  the  smaller  one,  eventu- 
ally, if  a  sufficient  period  of  time  were  allowed  for  the 
work. 

Let  the  buried  gas  holder  and  ascending  pipes,  represent 
the  gas  generating  measures  of  the  lower  rocks  and  the  in- 
numerable natural  leads  and  fissures  through  which  the  gas 
is  constantly  rising  to  the  surface.  The  supplying  reser- 
voir is  never  reached  by  our  drill  holes ;  the  escape  pipes 
may  be  tapped  or  may  not  as  the  accidental  circumstances 
of  location  of  well  and  structure  of  rock  may  determine — 
we  see  then  that  a  varying  volume  of  gas-flow  in  a  well,  or 
even  an  almost  entire  absence  of  it  cannot  be  considered  as 
a  good  argument  against  the  theory  in  review. 

§  501.  Wherever  the  drill  descends  below  the  horizon  of 
the  Venango  group,  a  large  proportion  of  mud  rock  (the 
drillers  "soapstone")  is  found,  interstratified  with  slate 
and  occasional  "shells,"  or  thin  bands  of  hard,  flaggy,  fine 
grained  sandstone.  These  mud-rocks  are  compact  and  im- 
pervious and  must  necessarily  interpose  an  almost  impass- 
able barrier  to  the  upward  flow  of  gas.  Probably  all  the 
measures  have  been  fractured  more  or  less  by  oscillations, 
shrinkage  and  warpings  of  the  earth  crust,  and  the  main 
avenues  for  the  passage  of  gas  through  them  follow  princi- 
pally these  lines  of  fracture. 

It  may  bex  inferred  then  that  a  porous  sandstone  which 
chanced  to  overlie  one  of  these  crazed  lines,  would  be  much 
sooner  filled  and  stored  with  gas  than  another  of  the  same 
quality  not  so  favorably  situated.  But  this  does  not  imply 
that  the  latter  would  never  be  filled,  for  we  must  not  lose 
sight  of  the  fact  that  nature  works  slowly  and  that  there  has 
been  no  lack  of  time  for  the  accomplishment  of  all  her  un- 
dertakings. Forgetting  this  we  frequently  misinterpret  her 
operations  and  overlook  the  achievements  of  some  of  her 
slow  but  most  effective  agents.  The  smallest  jets  of  gas, 
scarcely  noticeable  in  an  oil  well,  insignificant  as  they  ap- 
parently are.  have  no  doubt  had  ample  time  during  the  geo- 
logic ages,  through  their  agencies  alone,  to  deposit  in  the 


280  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

retaining  sandrocks  the  immense  volumes  of  gas  which  now 
so  astonish  the  world  in  flowing  gas  and  oil  wells. 

Water  drops  falling  one  every  hour  will  till  a  barrel  in 
time,  when  full,  an  inch  opening  empties  it  in  a  few  min- 
utes. So  with  our  underground  gas  and  oil  reservoirs  we 
draw  out  through  drill  holes  in  a  few  months,  what  nature 
has  been  ages  in  accumulating. 

§502.  The  question  previously  asked:  "What  are  the 
necessary  conditions  for  converting  organic  matter  into  oil  ?' ' 
repeats  itself  here  in  a  slightly  varied  form  ;  what  are  the 
requisite  conditions  fo  converting  organic  matter  into  gas 
and  gas  into  oil  f  and  must  receive  again  only  an  hypotheti- 
cal answer. 

If  in  the  one  case  an  horizon  of  distillation  be  required, 
in  the  other  horizons  of  distillation  and  condensation  seem 
to  be  demanded,  but  it  is  as  impossible  to  precisely  locate 
or  define  the  latter  as  the  former. 

The  disquisition  which  might  very  naturally  here  intrude, 
'as  to  whether  it  is  possible  or  not  for  gas  to  be  converted 
into  oil,  must  be  left  for  those  who  have  made  a  special 
study  of  such  matters.  On  the  presumption  that  nature 
has  some  way  of  accomplishing  the  fact,  although  her  pro- 
cesses are  not  at  present  understood  by  us,  we  may  pro- 
visionally admit  the  possibility  and  pass  on  to  notice  some 
of  the  physical  conditions  which  would  seem  to  be  required 
to  bring  about  such  results,  and  then  see  if  the  significant 
phenomena  exhibited  by  the  oil  development  are  in  har- 
mony with  these  requirements. 

§  503.  According  to  this  hypothesis  there  must  have  been 
two  distinct  stages  in  the  genesis  of  oil,  a  gas-making  stage 
and  an  oil-making  stage,  two  distinct  and  dissimilarly 
conditioned  natural  laboratories  where  the  work  was  per- 
formed, one  possessing  all  the  requirements  for  generating 
gas  from  the  carbonaceous  shales  brought  within  its  limits, 
the  other  containing  all  the  essential  qualifications  neces- 
sary for  reducing  the  gas  entering  within  the  sphere  of  its 
influence  into  oil.  A  study  of  the  latter,  which,  for  conven- 
ience, may  be  called  the  horizon  of  condensation,  concerns 
us  most  at  present,  as  that  is  the  one  where  oil  is  found  and 


ORIGIN  OF  PETROLEUM.  III.  281 

below  it  (if  this  hypothesis  be  correct)  it  will  be  useless  to 
sink  the  drill,  whatever  the  character  of  the  strata  may  be, 
except  in  expectation  of  finding  gas. 

Whether  this  hypothetical  horizon  of  condensation  should 
be  expected  to  embrace  a  uniform*  thickness  of  measures 
lying  in  a  horizontal  band  having  a  fixed  relation  to  ocean 
level  throughout  the  several  oil  fields,  or  may  be  supposed 
to  vary  from  horizontality  in  consequence  of  the  gradual 
uplift  of  the  rocks  toward  the  northeast,  its  position  being 
dependent  more  upon  surface  influences  than  sea  level,  we 
do  not  know. 

The  facts  as  developed  by  the  drill  are  these,  and  they 
seem  to  suggest  that  both  of  the  above  propositions  should 
be  kept  in  view  while  attempting  to  ascertain  the  limits  of 
this  horizon. 

§  504.  At  Tidioute,  Warren  county,  the  oil  producing 
sand  lies  about  1,000  feet  above  ocean  level,  the  highest 
altitude,  I  believe,  at  which  oil  has  been  obtained  in  the 
State.  At  Parkers,  Armstong  county,  the  rock  has  sunk 
to  very  near  tide  level,  and  at  Herman  station,  or  Great 
Belt  city,  Butler  county,  to  500  feet  below  tide.  Thus  the 
Venango  Third  sand  in  its  range  from  Tidioute  to  Herman 
station,  a  distance  of  about  sixty-five  miles,  runs  diagon- 
ally through  a  horizontal  section  of  the  earth  crust  1500  feet 
in  thickness. 

§  505.  It  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  generalized  profile 
section  from  Black  Rock,  N".  Y.,  to  Dunkard  Creek,  Pa., 
(Plates  X  and  XI,)  that  the  Warren  and  McKean  oil  hori- 
zons as  well  as  those  of  Slippery  Rock,  Smith' s  Ferry  and 
Dunkard  Creek  all  lie  within  the  same  vertical  range  of 
1500',  covered  by  the  Venango  group.  Therefore  all  the 
oil  thus  far  produced  in  Pennsylvania  has  come  from  strata 
lying  between  a  point  500  feet  below  ocean  level,  and  one  1000' 
above  ocean  level ;  and,  as  far  as  I  am  informed,  no  oil  has 
yet  been  produced  here  from  rocks  below  ocean  level,  ex- 
cept from  those  wells  located  in  Armstrong  and  Butler 
counties  south  of  a  latitudinal  line  crossing  the  Allegheny 
river  a  short  distance  south  of  Parker  city,  as  shown  on  dip 
diagram,  Plate  VIII,  (see  also  Plate  IX,)  and  perhaps  from 


282  III.       KEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

one  or  two  small  wells  near  the  south  line  of  McKean  county, 
where  the  "Bradford  Third  Sand"  which  lies  at  Bradford 
400'  above  ocean  level  just  begins  to  dip  below  that  datum 
plane. 

§  506.  Another  suggestive  fact  may  be  mentioned.  Not- 
withstanding the  large  number  of  deep  holes  put  down  in 
the  country  I  have  never  heard  of  a  well  producing  oil  from 
a  depth  of  2000  ft.  below  the  surface.  Some  of  the  Mc- 
Kean co.  wells  may  closely  approximate  to  that  depth,  but 
if  they  do  they  are  located  on  high  ground,  more  than  2000 
ft.  above  ocean  and  the  oil  rock  still  lies  above  tide  level.* 

A  list  of  some  of  these  dry  holes  which  have  been  put 
down  more  than  500  ft.  below  ocean  level,  may  be  given  to 
show  that  the  absence  of  oil  below  the  point  named  is  not 
an  inference  based  upon  negative  evidence  alone. 

Depth  of  Bottom  of  Well 

Well.  below  ocean  level. 

Well  at  Sharon,  Mercer  co.,  Pa., 1600'  700' 

"      New  Castle,  Lawrence  co., 2700'  1890' 

"      Beaver  Falls,  Beaver  co., 2330'  1600' 

"      Pittsburgh,  Allegheny  co., 2360'  1508' 

"      Tarentum,  Allegheny  co 2284'  1416' 

"  Pine  creek,  Armstrong  co.,     ....  1693'  893' 

"      Titusville,  Crawford  co., 3553'  2203 

"  Jackson  station,  Warren  co.,  ....  2041'  835' 

"      Fentonville,  Warren  co., 1830'  590' 

§  507.  I  do  not  mention  these  circumstances  to  prone  that 
there  is  no  oil  below  a  plane  500  ft.  below  ocean  level,  or 
that  it  is  useless  to  look  for  it  in  a  well  over  2000'  deep  ; 
but  simply  to  place  the  facts  on  record  and  to  call  attention 
to  them,  let  their  significance  be  what  it  may,  so  that  if 
hereafter,  deeper  productive  wells  and  deeper  oil  horizons 
are  found,  (as  it  is  quite  possible  they  may  be)  their  import 
as  new  features  in  a  study  of  the  oil  rocks  may  be  properly 
understood  and  appreciated. 

§  508.  Geologists  as  well  as  oil  producers  have  been  in- 
clined to  look  upon  the  question  of  the  origin  of  oil  as  one 
of  secondary  importance,  and  have  apparently  acted  upon 
the  presumption  that  the  oil  bearing  strata  were  to  be  studied 

*  Since  this  was  written  productive  oil  wells  about  2100  feet  deep  have 
been  obtained  on  some  of  the  high  hills  in  McKean  county ;  but  still  the  oil 
rock  lies  above  tide  level. 


ORIGIN  OF  PETROLEUM.    '  III.  283 

and  traced  just  the  same  whether  petroleum  was  indigenous 
to  the  rocks  where  found  or  a  foreign  deposit  accumulating 
there  from  other  sources.  But  we  see  even  from  the  above 
very  imperfect  review  of  some  of  the  conditions  which  ap- 
pear necessarily  to  belong  to  the  two  methods  of  generating 
oil  that  this  is  a  great  mistake. 

If  oil  originates  in  the  rock  where  found,  our  business  is 
simply  to  trace  that  rock ;  for  it  may  reasonably  be  sup- 
posed in  that  case,  that  the  oil  was  formed  and  stored  there 
before  the  uplifting  of  the  strata,  and  similar  conditions 
prevailing  at  that  time  (as  far  as  we  can  perceive)  through- 
out the  whole  range  of  rock,  similar  oil  deposits  ought  to 
be  expected  over  all  parts  of  it,  regardless  of  the  subsequent 
elevation  which  destroyed  its  horizontality.  But  if  it  is 
formed  from  gas,  it  has  probably  been  collected  and  stored 
since  the  uplift  and  we  can  only  expect  to  find  it  in  certain 
kinds  of  rocks  lying  within  a  definite  horizon.  Where 
those  rocks  by  reason  of  their  dip  rise  too  near  the  surface 
or  plunge  too  deep  below  it,  no  oil  has  been  elaborated  and 
stored  in  them. 

How  important  then  to  decide  which  is  the  correct  theory, 
so  that  we  may  study  the  subject  aright  and  obtain  an  ap- 
proximate idea  of  the  maximum  depth  to  which  it  is  judi- 
cious to  bore  for  oil. 

§  509.  Why  have  all  the  deep  wells  proved  failures  ?  Is 
it  because  no  proper  oil  bearing  rocks  were  perforated,  or 
because  they  were  encountered  at  too  great  depth  to  be  em- 
braced within  the  oil  making  horizon  ?  Why  have  these' 
wells  found  only  gas  and  salt  water  where  oil  was  expected  ? 
Why  does  the  Venango  group— so  abundantly  productive 
above  ocean  level,  and  so  freely  yielding  oil  in  Butler  co. 
down  to  about  400  feet  below  the  ocean — become  an  uncer- 
tain oil  horizon  at  500  feet  below  ocean,  and  after  that  fur- 
nish only  salt  water  and  gas,  in  all  the  wells  further  down 
the  slope  toward  the  south  ;  as  at  Beaver  Falls,  Pittsburgh, 
Sharpesburg,  Tarentum,  Leechburg,  &c.  ?  Why  does  the 
McKean  oil  rock,  so  completely  stored  with  oil  at  Bradford, 
400  feet  above  tide,  become  the  depository  of  immense  sup- 
plies of  salt  water  and  gas  with  but  little  oil,  near  the  south 


284  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

line  of  the  county,  as  the  oil  horizon  sinks  beneath  ocean 
level? 

Why  do  all  of  our  oil  producing  rocks  (with  the  excep- 
tions above  mentioned)  lie  above  ocean  ?  The  equivalents 
of  the  Venango,  Warren  and  McKean  groups  plunge  to  the 
feouth  and  southwest  far  below  that  level,  and  if  the  home 
of  oil  is  in  the  rock  where  it  is  found  why  should  there  not 
be  oil  in  these  deeper  rocks  ?  Is  it  not  a  singular  coinci- 
dence that  the  deposit  was  only  made  in  such  portions  of 
each  several  stratum  as  chanced  subsequently  to  be  elevated 
in  a  slightly  inclined  position  above  the  surface  level  of  the 
ocean,  wThile  the  balance  of  the  rock  remained  barren  ? 

These  and  many  other  curious  and  pertinent  questions 
may  be  asked — not  merely  to  arouse  idle  curiosity  in  the 
matter  but  to  incite  to  judicious  inqifiry.  If  there  be  a 
point  in  depth  below  which  it  is  useless  to  look  for  oil,  (and 
all  our  practical  experience  thus  far  warrants  the  entertain- 
ment of  the  supposition  that  there  is)  then  the  sooner  the 
probability  is  admitted  the  sooner  will  investigations  be 
made  to  establish  the  fact,  and  when  the  point  of  maximum 
depth  is  ascertained  it  may  be  the  means  of  saving  large 
expenditures  of  money  which  would  otherwise  be  lost  in 
blindly  sinking  wells  to  unreasonable  depths  in  search  of 
oil. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

Description  of  the  above  ground  machinery  employed  at 
an  oil  well;  derrick,  running-gear,  rig-irons,  boiler) 
engine,  &c. 

(Illustrated  by  Plate*  XIII,  XXXVI,  XXXVII,  and  XXXVIII.) 

§  510.  "  Carpenters'1  rig" — Having  secured  his  land  and 
selected  a  location  for  his  well,  the  first  step  of  the  oil- pro- 
ducer is  to  contract  for  the  erection  of  a  complete  "carpen- 
ters' rig"  over  the  spot  where  the  bore  hole  is  to  be  sunk. 

This  "carpenters'  rig"  consists  of  (1)  a  derrick,  with  bull- 
wheels  and  crown  pulley,  for  raising  and  lowering  the  drill- 
ing tools  while  drilling,  and  for  handling  the  tubing,  supker- 
rods,  &c.,  after  the  well  is  completed  ;  (2)  heavy  mud-sills, 
main-sill,  and  sub- sills  carrying  above  them  the  samson- 
post  and  jack-posts ;  (3)  walking-beam,  band-wheel  and 
sand-pump  reel ;  (4)  mud-sills  and  block  for  the  engine  to 
rest  upon  ;  (5)  an  engine-house  and  all  the  necessary  wood 
work  required  about  a  well,  so  that  drilling  may  commence 
as  soon  as  the  boiler  and  engine  are  put  in  position  and 
the  belt  is  attached  to  the  band-wheel. 

§  511.  Cost  of  rig. — This  part  of  the  work  costs  from 
$400  to  $700,  varying  according  to  location,  price  of  lumber 
and  season  of  the  year  when  erected.  A  "winter  rig,"  or 
one  put  up  for  winter  use  costing  somewhat  more  than  a 
"summer  rig"  on  account  of  extra  lumber  required  in  tem- 
porarily housing  in  the  lower  part  of  the  derrick  to  protect 
the  workmen  from  the  inclemency  of  the  weather. 

(285  III.) 


286  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

§  512.  Wooden  conductors. — The  next  step  is  to  sink  a 
"conductor"  through  the  loose  surface  accumulations  of 
gravel  and  clay,  to  the  "bed-rock." 

If  the  location  be  on  a  hillside,  where  the  superficial 
clays  and  gravels  are  seldom  more  than  ten  or  fifteen  feet 
thick,  a  common  well  shaft  six  or  eight  feet  square,  is  dug 
with  pick  and  shovel  until  the  solid  rock  is  reached.  A 
wooden  conductor  eight  inches  square  in  the  clear,  made 
by  spiking  together  two  2r/X10"  plank  of  the  proper  length, 
is  then  set  up  perpendicularly  between  the  "bed-rock" 
and  the  derrick  floor,  the  lower  end  being  carefully  adjusted 
in  the  rock  in  such  a  manner  that  no  gravel  or  mud  from 
the  washings  of  the  surrounding  surface  can  enter  the  well 
at  this  point. 

Meantime,  the  boiler  and  engine  having  been  "setup" 
all  things  are  now  ready  for  the  driller  to  commence  his 
work. 

Quite  frequently  all  of  this  work — building  the  "rig," 
"setting  up"  the  boiler  and  engine,  and  adjusting  the  con- 
ductor, is  included  in  the  contract  for  the  carpenters'  rig. 

§  513.  On  Plate  XIII  will  be  found  complete  mecJianical 
drawings  of  every  part  of  the  carpenters'  rig  ;  prepared  in 
minute  detail  by  Mr.  H.  Martyn  Chance,  from  working  plans 
furnished  by  Mr.  J.  H.  Carll,  while  engaged  in  securing 
the  Butler  county  well  records  given  in  another  place. 

These  drawings  should  enable  a  mechanic  in  any  part  of 
the  world,  to  construct  a  first  class  "rig"  adapted  to  the 
sinking  of  a  bore  hole  2500  or  3000  feet  deep,  although  he 
may  never  have  seen  an  oil  well.  It  may  assist  him  how- 
ever if  we  briefly  refer  to  some  important  points  in  con- 
struction, and  then  show  how  connections  are  made  between 
the  several  parts  so  that  the  machinery  may  be  directed  to 
do  the  work  required  of  it. 

§  514.  Foundation  timbers. — Practically,  the  quality  and 
dimensions  of  the  foundation  timbers  are  governed  by  no 
arbitrary  laws,  but  depend  very  much  upon  the  circum- 
stances surrounding  the  well.  In  some  places,  sawed  tim- 
ber like  that  shown  in  the  drawing,  can  be  obtained ;  but 
generally,  'it  is  cheaper  to  fell  trees  as  near  the  well  as  pos- 


OIL  WELL  EIG.  III.  287 

sible  and  flatten  them  on  two  sides  only,  in  which  case  the 
hewed  sticks  will  necessarily  vary  somewhat  in  size.  We 
have  given  the  dimensions  for  a  good,  solid  foundation, 
and  any  competent  mechanic  can  judge  how  far  he  may 
safely  alter  the  details. 

The  mud-sills,  a,  (Plate  XIII,)  are  generally  sunk  in 
trenches,  where  the  nature  of  the  ground  admits  of  its  be- 
ing done.  They  have  gains  cut  into  them  to  receive  the 
main-sill,  d,  and  sub-sills,  e  and  e' '.  After  all  have  been 
put  in  place  and  leveled  up,  the  keys  or  wedges,  h,  are 
driven,  and  the  whole  foundation  is  thus  firmly  locked 
together. 

§  515.  TJie  Samson-post,  7c,  and  Jack-posts,  I,  s,  &  r, 
are  dovetailed  into  the  sills  and  held  by  properly  fitted 
keys,  li,  as  seen  in  the  side  elevation.  The  braces  are  all 
set  in  gains,  and  keyed  up,  no  mortises  and  tenons  being 
used  in  the  structure.  The  advantages  of  this  method  of 
'construction  are: — (1)  greater  strength;  (2)  the  keys  can 
be  driven  from  time  to  time  to  compensate  shrinkage ;  (3) 
the  posts  and  braces  being  adjustable,  the  different  parts 
are  easily  put  into  line  and  kept  there ;  (4)  the  whole  is 
quickly  taken  apart  in  a  convenient  shape  for  removal, 
when  the  well  is  abandoned. 

§  516.  Center  line  of  main-sill  not  always  parallel  with 
center  line  of  walking '-beam. — Referring  to  the  horizontal 
projection  on  Plate  XIII,  it  will  be  observed  that  the  sam- 
son-post  is  placed  flush  with  one  side  of  the  main-sill,  and 
the  band- wheel  jack-post  is  put  flush  with  the  other  side. 
In  this  way  the  walking-beam  is  made  to  run  parallel  with 
the  main-sill.  But  if  the  main-sill  be  less  than  24  inches 
wide — say  20  inches,  for  instance— the  samson-post  must 
necessarily  be  moved  two  inches  in  one  direction  to  get  a 
full  bearing  upon  it,  and  the  jack-post  two  inches  in  the 
other  direction.  The  effect  of  this  will  be  to  swing  the 
derrick  end  of  the  walking-beam  six  inches  away  from  the 
well-hole  as  here  located,  and  to  throw  the  engine  founda- 
tion and  all  the  running-gear  out  of  line. 

If,  then,  a  smaller  main-sill  is  to  be  used,  the  work  may 
be  laid  out  as  follows : 


288  III.        EEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

After  placing  the  main-sill  in  the  position  desired,  mark 
the  point  on  it  where  the  center  of  the  samson-post  is  to 
come  ;  then  mark  also  the  point  on  which  a  perpendicular 
will  fall  from  the  center  of  the  wrist-pin.  Knowing  the 
size  of  samson-post,  length  of  walking-beam  and  dimen- 
sions of  band- wheel  irons  (that  is,  the  length  of  box,  thick- 
ness of  arm  and  length  of  wrist-pin  to  the  center  of  pitman), 
these  points  are  easily  fixed.  Now  snap  a  chalk  line  pass- 
ing through  these  two  points  and  take  that  to  work  from, 
squaring  everything  to  this  line,  the  same  as  if  it  ran  par- 
allel to  the  main-sill,  as  seen  in  the  drawing.  It  virtually 
alters  nothing  except  the  main-sill  which  is  thus  thrown  a 
little  out  of  square  with  the  other  work. 

A  crooked  sticTc  is  sometimes  used  to  very  good  advan- 
tage for  a  main-sill,  for  a  slight  bend  in  the  right  direction 
gives  both  posts  a  more  central  bearing  upon  it  than  if  it 
were  straight. 

These  points  are  mentioned  to  put  the  inexperienced  on 
their  guard,  should  they  attempt  to  build  on  the  general 
plan  here  given,  without  properly  considering  the  trouble 
an  alteration  of  a  few  inches  might  make,  especially  if  it 
affected  the  center  line.  Any  intelligent  mechanic,  how- 
ever, when  he  understands  the  plan,  will  readily  see  how 
he  can  vary  the  details  to  meet  the  requirements  of  his  case 
and  still  secure  the  results  desired. 

§  517.  The  boiler  supplying  steam  for  the  engine  is  not 
shown  on  Plate  XIII,  but  a  cut  of  one  now  in  popular  favor 
is  given  on  Plate  XXX VI,  opposite.  It  was  formerly  set 
up  in  the  engine-house — in  fact,  portable  boilers  and  en- 
gines were  generally  used,  the  engine  being  bolted  on  the 
top  or  side  of  the  boiler,  and  the  boiler  sometimes  mounted 
on  wheels.  But  deep  wells  and  heavy  drilling  tools  now 
make  it  necessary  to  have  a  stationary  engine ;  and  since 
the  plan  of  drilling  through  dry  casing  has  been  univer- 
sally adopted,  so  many  explosions  and  iires  have  occurred 
from  the  ignition  of  gas  at  the  furnace  fire  that  it  is  found 
more  prudent  to  place  the  boiler  at  some  convenient  spot 
outside  of  the  engine-house,  and  then  when  the  oil  rock  is 
approached  by  the  drill  and  danger  from  a  sudden  out- 


Plate  XXXVIII. 


III.  289 


19  III. 


290  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

burst  of  gas  and  oil  is  apprehended,  drilling  is  suspended 
and  the  boiler  (together  with  the  tool-dressing  forge  which 
up  to  this  time  has  occupied  one  side  of  the  derrick)  is  re- 
moved to  a  safe  distance — perhaps  20  or  30  rods — from  the 
well. 

After  the  well  is  completed  and  the  gas  and  oil  are  under 
control,  the  boiler  will  again  be  moved  and  permanently  set 
up  in  the  engine-house,  if  the  well  is  an  isolated  one,  and 
is  to  be  pumped  independently  of  others. 

But  if,  as  is  frequently  the  case,  the  owners  have  already 
drilled  or  intend  to  drill  live  or  six  wells  in  the  vicinity,  it 
is  more  economical  to  centrally  locate  a  30  or  40  horse-power 
boiler,  and  from  it  convey  steam  to  the  engines  at  the  sev- 
eral wells,  through  pipes  wrapped  with  felt  or  encased  in 
boxing  ten  inches  square  and  filled  with  saw-dust,  tan-bark, 
or  some  other  partial  non-conductor  of  heat. 

Thus  the  small  boilers  become  available  for  drilling  in 
other  places,  and  two  engineers  or  pumpers,  working  alter- 
nately twelve  hours  each,  can  look  after  all  of  the  wells  in 
the  cluster.* 

§  518.   The  engine,  b', — a  twelve  or  fifteen  horse-power, 

*  A  still  more  economical  method  for  pumping  groups  of  wells  has  come 
into  very  general  use  in  some  localities,  within  the  last  five  years.  It  is  called 
the  Sucker  Rod  connection,  and  by  it  as  many  as  a  dozen  wells  may  be 
pumped  by  one  boiler  and  engine,  but  slightly  increasing  the  usual  cost  of 
pumping  a  single  well. 

From  the  central  well  strings  of  sucker  rods  branch  out  in  all  directions 
and  form  direct  connections  with  the  other  wells,  so  that  when  the  central 
one  is  put  in  motion  all  the  others  must  move  also.  To  avoid  friction,  the 
rods  are  held  suspended  a  few  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  ground  and  swing 
on  cords  depending  from  the  tops  of  posts  set  at  proper  intervals  along  the 
line ;  or  they  are  supported  by  placing  triangular  horses  under  them,  which 
rock  backward  and  forward  with  the  alternating  movement  of  the  rods. 
Wells  1500  feet  apart  are  thus  connected  and  successfully  pumped,  and  by 
ingenious  applications  of  rocking-levers,  elbows,  knuckle-joints,  and  tees, 
the  lines  are  made  to  run  up  hill  or  down,  straight  from  one  well  to  another, 
or  to  turn  at  any  angle  desired.  The  wells  are  balanced  in  pairs  and  so  con- 
nected that  when  the  pump-rods  in  one  come  up  those  in  the  other  go  down ; 
therefore  but  little  increase  of  power  is  needed  to  pump  additional  wells. 

Sucker  rods  were  first  used  for  these  connections,  because  they  were  con- 
venient, and  old  rods  were  plenty  and  cheap ;  but  as  they  became  scarcer, 
other  things  were  substituted  —  scantlings  nailed  together  in  continuous 
strings — hoop-iron  and  wire — all  of  which  are  successfully  used. 


OIL  WELL  KIG.  III.  291 

reversible  movement,  is  bolted  to  the  engine  block,  5,  and 
by  means  of  its  driving  pulley,  carrying  belt,  o  o,  (which  is 
made  of  four- ply  rubber,  eight  inches  wide,)  communicates 
motion  to  the  band- wheel,  m,  and  through  it  to  all  other 
parts  of  the  machinery. 

To  make  the  above  descriptions  more  plain,  we  give  two 
full  page  cuts  of  a  popular  style  of  boiler  and  engine,  on 
Plates  XXXVI  and  XXXVII ;  the  electrotypes  for  which 
were  kindly  loaned  by  the  Gribbs  &  Sterrett  Manufacturing 
Company  of  Titusville.  Probably  over  10,000  boilers  and 
engines  are  constantly  at  work  in  the  oil  region,  and  of 
course  there  are  many  manufacturers  of  them  and  a  va- 
riety of  patterns.  The  well-sinker  may  have  a  preference 
for  this  machine  or  that,  according  to  his  own  ideas  of  ex- 
cellence ;  but  for  the  purposes  of  illustration  there  need  be 
no  choice  between  them,  for  they  are  all  constructed  essen- 
tially after  one  model  and  vary  only  in  details  which  can 
not  here  be  referred  to. 

§  519.  The  tJirottle-valve,  II,  is  operated  by  a  grooved 
vertical  pulley.  From  this  pulley  an  endless  cord  or  wire 
(technically  called  "the  telegraph")  extends  to  the  derrick 
and  passes  around  a  similar  pulley,  nn,  fixed  Upon  the 
headache  post,  z,  within  easy  reach  of  the  driller.  With 
the  two  pulleys  thus  connected,  the  movement  of  one  com- 
municates a  like  motion  to  the  other;  consequently  the 
driller  has  only  to  place  his  hand  upon  the  derrick  pulley 
to  operate  the  throttle- valve,  and  thus  he  starts  or  stops 
the  engine  and  increases  or  decreases  its  speed,  without 
leaving  his  position  at  the  well  mouth. 

§  520.  The  reverse  link,  pp,  is  also  operated  from  the 
derrick  by  the  cord,  q  q,  which  passes  over  two  pulleys, 
one  fixed  in  the  engine-house,  and  the  other  in  the  derrick. 
A  slight  pull  upon  the  cord  raises  the  link  and  reverses  the 
movement  of  the  driving-wheel  of  the  engine.  When  the 
cord  is  released  the  link  drops  back  and  restores  the  regu- 
lar motion. 

In  deep  wells  and  with  such  heavy  tools  as  are  now  em- 
ployed, it  is  laborious  work  for  non-reversing  engines  to 
make  the  first  two  or  three  revolutions  upon  starting  to 


292  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

drill,  and  they  frequently  "stall"  or  come  to  a  stop  on  the 
"dead  center ;"  but  with  the  devices  here  shown,  the  driller 
commands  the  throttle  with  one  hand  and  the  reverse  with 
the  other,  and  by  adroitly  manipulating  them  both  together, 
he  is  enabled  to  start  without  difficulty. 

§  521.  The  band-wJieel,  m,  receives  its  motion  direct  from 
the  driving-pully  of  the  engine,  to  which  it  is  connected  by 
the  belt,  oo.  On  or  near  the  end  of  its  shaft,  o,  is  the  bull- 
rope  pulley,*  ?i ;  and  to  its  other  end  is  attached  the  arm 
or  crank,  o'.  In  this  arm  a  number  of  holes  are  drilled  to 
receive  an  adjustable  wrist-pin,  p,  which  may  easily  be 
moved  from  one  hole  to  another,  to  regulate  the  length  of 
stroke  required  in  drilling  or  pumping. 

As  the  band- wheel  communicates  motion  through  the 
pitman,  <?,  to  the  walking-beam,  while  drilling  ;  to  the  bull- 
wheels,  by  the  bull-rope,  rr,  while  running  up  the  tools; 
and  to  the  sand-pump  reel,  by  the  friction-pulley,  w,  while 
sand-pumping ;  and  as  these  movements  are  all  used  sepa- 
rately and  at  different  times,  it  is  necessary  that  the  ma- 
chinery be  so  constructed  in  its  different  parts  that  connec- 
tions may  be  quickly  made  or  broken,  and  one  kind  of 
motion  substituted  for  another  at  pleasure. 

§  522.  The  sand-pump  reel,  w,  is  put  in  motion  by  press- 
ing on  the  lever  #,  which  is  joined  by  the  connecting  bar,  u, 
to  upright  lever, f  t.  This  brings  the  face  of  the  beveled 
pulley,  w,  into  contact  with  the  face  of  the  band- wheel.  It 
is  simply  a  friction  pulley  and  can  be  thrown  in  and  out  of 
gear  at  will,  no  matter  at  what  speed  the  band-wheel  may 
be  revolving. 

Tlie  sand-pump  descends  into  the  well  by  its  own  gravity, 

*Some  prefer  to  set  the  jack-post  close  to  the  band-wheel,  so  that  the  bull- 
rope  pulley  may  be  put  outside  of  it  on  the  end  of  the  shaft.  In  this  way 
the  bull-rope  is  more  accessible,  and  the  bull-wheel  shaft  in  the  derrick  can 
be  made  a  little  longer,  but  the  band- wheel  bearings  are  thus  shortened  up 
and  cannot  be  said  to  be  improved  by  it. 

f  This  lever  should  be  made  of  some  tough  and  elastic  wood,  cut  thin  near 
the  upper  end,  as  shown  in  the  drawing,  so  that  it  may  act  as  a  spring  and 
relieve  the  man  at  hand  lever  v  from  the  disagreeable  "jerky  "  motion  which 
otherwise  results  from  the  slight  irregularities  of  the  two  friction  surfaces, 
when  everything  is  rigid. 


Plate  XXXVII. 


III.  293 


294  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

and  to  prevent  it  from  attaining  too  great  speed,  it  is  checked 
by  pressing  the  lever,  t>,  backward  so  as  to  throw  the  fric- 
tion pulley  w,  against  a  post,  or  a  curved  piece  of  sheet 
iron  set  behind  it  in  proper  position  to  act  as  a  brake  when 
the  wheel  is  pressed  against  it. 

The  sand-pump  line  is  coiled  upon  the  shaft,  x.  It  is  a 
cable  laid  rope  $•  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  and  passes  direct 
from  the  shaft  over  the  pulley,  ii,  and  thence  down  inside 
of  the  derrick  to  the  well  mouth,  where  it  is  secured  to  the 
bail  of  the  sand-pump. 

Sand-pumps  and  bailers  of  several  kinds  are  in  use. 
The  most  common  one  is  a  plain  cylinder  of  thin  galvanized 
iron  with  a  bail  on  top,  and  either  a  leather  flap-valve  or  a 
metal  stem-valve  in  the  bottom.  It  is  usually  about  6' 
long,  but  when  large  quantities  of  water  or  oil  are  to  be 
dipped  from  the  well,  it  may  be  lengthened  to  15  or  20  feet. 
Stem-valve  bailers  are  much  esteemed  on  account  of  their 
convenience  in  discharging  contents.  The  valve  stem  pro- 
jects downward  a  few  inches  beyond  the  bottom  of  the 
cylinder.  To  empty  the  pump  it  is  only  necessary  to  let  it 
rest  on  the  bottom  of  the  waste-trough,  when  the  stem 
opens  the  valve  and  the  sediment  escapes.  The  flap-valve 
pumps  are  emptied  through  the  top,  by  inverting  them. 

Other  sand-pumps  are  made  of  wrought  iron  casing  and 
in  addition  to  the  bottom  valve  they  have  a  plunger  attached 
to  an  iron  rod  which  passes  through  a  hole  in  a  stirrup 
spanning  the  top  of  the  case.  The  sand-pump  line  is 
secured  to  an  eye  in  the  top  of  this  rod  and  the  pump 
chamber  hangs  suspended  from  the  bottom  of  it — held  by 
the  plunger,  which  cannot  pass  through  the  hole  in  the  stir- 
rup. When  the  pump  stops  at  the  bottom  of  the  well,  the 
slack  of  the  rope  allows  the  plunger  and  rod  to  settle  down 
into  the  pump  chamber  ;  consequently  on  an  upward  move- 
ment the  plunger  and  rod  start  first  and  travel  the  length 
of  the  cylinder  drawing  in  the  sediment  from  the  bottom ; 
but  when  the  plunger  readies  the  stirrup  the  cylinder  starts 
upward  also,  closing  the  lower  valve  and  retaining  the  sedi- 
ment thus  drawn  into  it  to  be  delivered  at  the  well  mouth. 

§523.   The  butt-wheels,    bt>,   are  driven   bv  the    "bull- 


OIL  WELL  RIG.  III.  295 

rope,"  rr,  which  is  made  of  two  inch  plain-laid  cable,  joined 
together  by  iron  couplings.*  When  not  in  use  the  rope  or 
belt  is  thrown  out  of  its  grooved  pulley  on  the  bull-wheel 
and  thus  remains  lying  so  loosely  in  the  grooved  pulley, 
n,  on  the  band-wheel  shaft,  that  there  is  no  friction  upon 
it,  and  the  pulley  revolves  so  smoothly  that  the  rope  is  sel- 
dom displaced  from  the  groove.  When  the  rope  is  raised 
to  its  place  on  the  bull-wheel  pulley  and  drawn  taut,  mo- 
tion is  communicated  from  the  band-wheel,  it  slips  into  its 
groove  and  the  bull-wheels  revolve.  It  can  be  thrown  on 
and  off  at  pleasure  when  the  engine  is  not  running  too 
rapidly. 

§  524.  TTie  walking -beam  connections  cannot  be  made  or 
broken  while  the  band-wheel  is  in  motion.  To  disconnect 
at  the  pitman,  g,  the  engine  must  be  stopped.  The  wedge 
seen  above  the  wrist-pin,  p,  is  driven  back  to  loosen  the 
follower, f  and  then  the  pitman  is  pulled  forward  off  of  the 
wrist-pin,  carried  back  toward  the  samson-post,  #,  and 
lowered  to  the  main-sill  out  of  the  reach  of  arm,  o ',  when 
again  revolving.  This  tips  the  walking-beam  to  an  angle 
of  about  25°  to  the  horizon,  in  which  position  the  derrick 
end  of  it  is  thrown  back  a  foot  or  more  from  its  former 
perpendicular  over  the  hole,  and  there  is  thus  no  danger  of 

*As  the  band-wheel  and  bull-wheels  revolve  in  opposite  directions  this 
rope  must  be  crossed,  and  it  is  advantageous  to  have  it  so,  for  it  thus  gets 
more  bearing  surface  upon  the  pulleys,  by  which  its  tractive  power  is  mate- 
rially augmented. 

f  The  dimensions  of  the  lower  part  of  the  pitman  are  4"  X6".  After  insert- 
ing a  stout  bolt  near  the  end  to  prevent  its  splitting,  a  hole  is  bored  for  the 
wrist-pin  and  a  slot  about  six  inches  long  cut  upward  from  it.  to  receive  the 
follower  which  is  made  of  some  hard  durable  wood  and  forms  an  adjustable 
box  for  the  wrist-pin  to  work  in.  Another  mortise,  say  1^"  wide  and  4"  long 
is  then  cut  for  the  wedge  at  right  angles  to  the  other,  the  bottom  of  it  being 
an  inch  and  a  half  below  the  top  of  the  follower  slot.  But  the  corresponding 
cut  in  the  top  of  the  follower  should  only  be  one  inch  deep,  so  that  when  the 
wedge  is  driven  it  bears  upon  the  follower  alone  and  holds  it  tightly  against 
the  wrist-pin,  preventing  the  "chuck"  which  would  otherwise  occur  if  no 
means  were  provided  for  keeping  this  important  joint  in  proper  adjustment. 

The  wrist-pin  has  a  hole  drilled  in  it  and  is  furnished  with  a  washer  and 
pin  to  prevent  the  pitman  from  working  off  in  front.  The  driller  seldom 
takes  the  trouble  to  use  them,  however,  for  the  pitman  never  flies  off  if  the 
machinery  is  kept  in  proper  running  order. 


290  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

its  interference  with  the  cable,  tools,  or  sand-pump  as  they 
are  run  up  and  down  in  the  derrick. 

§525.  The  ^headache-post,  z,  also  called  a  "life-pre- 
server," is  comparatively  a  recent  improvement,  designed, 
as  its  name  implies,  to  save  the  driller  a  headache  or  per- 
haps his  life,  in  case  the  wrist-pin  should  break  or  the  pit- 
man fly  off  of  it  while  drilling,  thus  suddenly  causing  the 
derrick  end  of  the  walking-beam  to  drop  under  the  great 
weight  of  the  suspended  drilling  tools  and  endangering  the 
safety  of  ail  who  might  be  within  reach  of  it.  This  post, 
which  may  be  made  from  any  sapling  six  or  eight  inches 
in  diameter  cut  to  the  proper  length,  is  set  upon  the  main- 
sill  immediately  under  the  Avalking-beam,  so  that  if  such 
an  accident  occur  the  walking-beam  can  fall  but  a  few 
inches  and  do  no  harm.  It  is  also  useful  when  some  slight 
repairs  to  the  pitman  or  band- wheel  crank  are  needed  while 
the  tools  are  suspended  in  the  well.  By  placing  a  block 
between  it  and  the  walking-beam,  the  pitman  is  relieved  of 
weight  and  can  be  unshipped  without  disconnecting  the 
tools  from  the  temper  screw. 

Oil  Well  Rig  Irons. 

§  526.  The  details  of  Plate  XIII  may  be  further  illus- 
trated and  explained  by  the  figures  on  page  Plate  X  XXVIII, 
which  represent  the  complete  set  of  irons  belonging  to  a 
carpenter' s  rig.  They  are  as  follows : 

a,  Walking-beam  stirrup. 

6,  Bolts  for  securing  it  by  a  wooden  cap  to  walking-beam. 

c,  Boxes  for  band-wheel  shaft. 

d,  Band- wheel  shaft,  arm,  and  flanges. 

e,  Center  irons  for  walking-beam  and  samson-post. 
e',  Bolts  for  securing  the  saddle  to  walking-beam. 

/,  Derrick  or  crown  pulley. 

<7,  Walking- beam  hook,  to  hold  temper-screw. 

§  527.  Cost  of  Rig-irons. — In  1879,  when  low  prices  were 
ruling,  these  irons  complete,  (shaft  3£''  in  diameter  and  4' 
6"  long,  flanges  20"  in  diameter,)  together  with  a  sand-pump 
pulley  and  two  gudgeons  and  two  bands  for  the  ends  of  the 
bull-wheel  shaft,  cost  $75  00. 


Ill  (' he!  p!  XXVI 


Plate  XXXVIII 


j  n 


Ill  Chap!  XXIX 


Plate  JCXXIX 


OIL  WELL  RIG.  III.  297 

For  parts  of  sets  the  following  prices  are  given  in  the 
price  list  of  Jarecki  Manufacturing  Company  of  Erie,  date 
1876: 

f  Shaft,  4'  6"  long,  3£"  diameter, $9  50 

Crank,  14"  to  46"  stroke,  6  holes, 7  00 

Wrist-pin,  2f"  diameter, 3  50 

Pair  of  flanges,  24"  diameter, 8  25 

Pair  of  flanges,  20"  diameter, 5  60 

Flange-bolts,  7"  long,  f"  diameter,  each     .    .    .  12£ 

Steel  keys  for  flanges  and  crank,  each     ....  50 

Collar,  with  steel  set-screw,* 1  20 

c,  Two  boxes,  babbitted  and  with  bolts, 8  50 

a,  Walking-beam  stirrup,  2|"  X  f ", 5  00 

&,  Four  bolts  for  securing  the  cap, 1  00 

e,  Saddle  for  walking-beam, 4  50 

e,  Side-irons,  boxes,  and  bolts  for  samson-post,  .  7  00 

e',  Four  bolts  for  saddle, 1  20 

/,  Derrick-pulley,  20"  diameter, 5  00 

g,  Walking-beam  hook,  heavy,      .    . 3  35 

Sand-pump  pulley, 3  25 

Two  gudgeons  with  bands,  for  bull-wheel,     .    .  5  00 

*This  collar  belongs  on  the  shaft,  and  is  clamped  to  it  by  a  set-screw,  close 
to  one  of  the  boxes,  to  prevent  the  shaft  from  moving  endways.  It  is  not 
shown  in  d,  because  the  llanges  of  the  bull-rope  pulley  are  outside  of  the  box, 
and  may  be  keyed  close  against  it,  so  as  to  answer  the  same  purpose  as  the 
collar. 


298  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

(Illustrated  by  Plate  XVI.) 

Description  of  drilling  tools.     ^  Stringing"  them  in  the 
derrick.     "Spudding"  and  drilling. 

§  528.  But  little  need  be  said  in  explanation  of  plate  XVI. 
The  tools  are  drawn  to  scale  so  accurately  and  their  dimen- 
sions given  so  fully  that  each  figure  speaks  for  itself. 

Only  the  plain  drilling  tools  are  shown,  for  it  would  re- . 
quire  a  large  volume  and  be  almost  an  endless  task  to  de- 
scribe and  illustrate  the  thousands  of  fishing  tools  that  have ' 
been  invented  and  used  by  the  driller  and  well  manager  to 
meet  the  varied  accidental  emergencies  daily  occurring  in 
well  boring  and  well  pumping.  These  tools  are  of  all  kinds, 
from  the  delicate  grab  designed  to  pick  up  a  small  piece  of 
valve  leather  or  a  broken  sucker-rod  rivet  from  the  pump 
chamber  to  the  ponderous  string  of  "pole  tools"  contain- 
ing tons  of  iron,  which,  at  a  depth  of  1500  feet  or  more,  can 
unscrew  a  set  of  "stuck  tools  "  and  bring  them  up  piece  by 
piece,  or  cut  a  thread  upon  the  broken  end  of  a  sinker-bar 
or  an  auger-stem,  so  that  it  can  be  screwed  fast  to  and 
loosened  by  the  use  of  "whiskey  jacks"  at  the  surface. 

§529.  li  A  string  of  drilling  tools"  consists  of  rope- 
socket,  sinker-bar,  jars,  auger-stem  and  bit,  weighing  al- 
together about  2100  pounds  as  will  presently  be  shown  in 
detail.  It  is  divided  by  the  jars  into  two  members,  one 
delivering  its  blow  downward,  the  other  upward. 

§  530.  The  auger  or  drill  which  cuts  and  pulverizes  the 
rock  by  its  impact,  weighs  about  1320  pounds,  and  consists 
of  the  bit,  the  auger-stem  and  the  lower  wing  of  the  jars. 

§  531.  The  sinker -bar  with  the  upper  wing  of  the  jars 
and  the  rope-socket  attached,  and  weighing  about  780 
pounds,  adds  no  force  to  the  blow  of  the  auger-stem,  for  it- 
hangs  at  all  times  suspended  on  the  cable.  Its  function  is 
to  deliver  a  blow  to  the  auger-stem  on  the  upward  stroTce 


DRILLING-  TOOLS.  III.  299 

so  that  the  jar  may  loosen  the  drill  in  case  it  should  wedge 
or  stick  in  the  rock  it  is  cutting. 

If  an  auger-stem  be  attached  directly  to  the  cable  it  will 
be  found  impossible  to  drop  and  raise  it  with  a  regular 
motion,  for  the  bit  will  frequently  stick,  when  the  cable  al- 
ternately stretching  and  contracting  allows  the  walking- 
beam  to  make  its  accustomed  sweep  while  the  drill  remains 
stationary  at  the  bottom.  A  slight  jar  on  the  upward  stroke 
prevents  this  sticking. 

§  532.  The  jars,  therefore,  form  a  very  important  mem- 
ber of  the  drilling  tools,  being  the  connecting  link  between 
the  drill  and  the  means  of  operating  it.  Fig.  C,  on  Plate 
XVI,  is  a  very  good  representation  of  them,*  but  as  they 
are  there  shown  closed,  or  with  the  upper  wing  resting 
upon  the  lower  one,  (instead  of  the  lower  suspended  from 
the  upper,  as  they  would  appear  when  in  use,)  and  as  the 
improved  rounded  wing  in  front  entirely  conceals  the  cen- 
tral slot  from  view,  we  give  a  sketch  of  another  pair,  where 
both  wings  are  made  alike  and  the  links  are  open.  (See 
Fig.  K,  page  Plate  XXXIX.)  The  two  sets  are  precisely 
alike  in  principle,  and  vary  only  in  details  of  construction. 
If  the  upper  wing  in  Fig.  C  be  drawn  up,  it  will  move  13 
inches  before  the  cross-heads,  (that  is  the  solid  part  play- 
ing in  the  slot,)  seen  in  section  C',  strikes  the  cross-head 
seen  in  C",  and  we  shall  then  have  the  upper  part  of  the 
slot  in  the  upper  wing  in  view,  as  in  Fig.  K,  Plate  XXXIX. 
This  slot  is  If  inches  wide  and  21  inches  long,  exclusive  of 
the  5-inch  narrow  crotch-slot,  already  in  sight  in  Fig.  C. 
Both  wings  are  slotted  in  the  same  manner,  and  when  put 
together,  the  cross-head  of  the  upper  one  passes  through 
the  slot  of  the  lower ;  and  the  cross-head  of  the  lower  one 
through  the  slot  of  the  upper — like  two  flat  links  in  a  chain. 
As  the  cross-heads  are  each  8  inches  long,  and  the  slots  21 
inches,  there  remains  13  inches  of  the  slots  unoccupied, 
which  represents  the  "play"  of  the  jars. 

§  533.  The  manner  in  which  the  jars  perform  their 
work  may  be  best  explained,  perhaps,  in  this  way.  Sup- 

*  The  jars  are  sometimes  welded  to  the  auger-stem  instead  of  being  con- 
nected by  a  box  and  pin,  as  here  shown. 


300  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

pose  the  tools  to  have  been  just  run  to  the  bottom  of  the 
well— the  jars  are  closed,  as  in  Fig.  C— the  cable  is  slack. 
The  men  now  take  hold  of  the  bull- wheels  and  draw  up  the 
slack  until  the  sinker- bar  rises,  the  "play"  of  the  jars  al- 
lowing it  to  come  up  13  inches  without  disturbing  the  auger- 
stem.  They  watch  for  the  coming  together  of  the  cross- 
heads,  which  will  be  plainly  indicated  by  a  tremulous  mo- 
tion communicated  to  the  cable,  and  by  the  additional 
weight  of  the  auger-stem.  When  the  jars  come  together 
they  slack  back  about  four  inches  and  the  cable  is  in  posi- 
tion to  be  clamped  in  the  temper-screw. 

If  now  the  vertical  movement  of  the  walking-beam  be  24 
inches — when  it  starts  on  the  up  stroke  the  sinker-bar  first 
moves ;  it  rises  4  inches — the  cross-heads  come  together 
with  a  sharp  blow,  and  the  auger-stem  is  picked  up  and 
lifted  20  inches.  On  the  down  stroke  the  auger-stem  falls 
20  inches,  while  the  sinker-bar  goes  down  24  inches  to  tele- 
scope the  jars  for  the  next  blow  coming  up.  This  is  the 
theory  of  the  movement,  but  of  course  in  practice  the 
spring  of  the  cable  in  deep  wells  and  the  weight  of  tools 
make  many  modifications  necessary. 

Some  writers,  in  describing  the  manner  of  drilling,  con- 
vey the  impression  that  the  sinker-bar  is  used  as  a  mall  to 
drive  the  auger  into  the  rock  ;  but  this,  we  see,  is  entirely 
erroneous.  A  skillful  driller  never  allows  his  jars  to  strike 
together  on  the  down  stroke.  They  are  only  used  to  "jar 
down"  when  the  tools  stick  on  some  obstruction  in  the  well 
before  reaching  the  bottom,  and  in  fishing  operations. 

An  unskillful  workman  sometimes  " looses  the  jar,"  (es- 
pecially if  the  well  be  deep  and  nearly  full  of  water,)  and 
works  for  hours  without  accomplishing  anything.  The 
tools  may  be  standing  on  the  bottom,  while  he  is  playing 
with  the  slack  of  the  cable,  or  they  may  be  swinging  all 
the  time  several  feet  from  the  bottom.  If  he  cannot  recog- 
nize the  jar  he  is  working  entirely  in  the  dark  ;  but  an  ex- 
pert will  tell  you  the  moment  he  puts  his  hand  upon  the 
cable  whether  the  drill  is  working  properly  or  not. 

As  the  "jar  works  off,"  or  grows  more  feeble,  by  reason 
of  the  downward  advance  of  the  drill,  it  is  "tempered"  to 


DKILLING  TOOLS.  III.  001 

the  proper  strength  by  letting  down  the  temper-screw  to 
give  the  jars  more  play. 

§  534.  The  Temper  screw,  I,  forms  the  connecting  link 
between  walking-beam  and  cable,  and  it  is  "let  out" 
gradually  to  regulate  the  play  of  the  jars,  as  fast  as  the 
drill  penetrates  the  rock.  When  its  whole  length  is  run 
down,  the  rope  clamps  play  very  near  the  well  mouth. 
The  tools  are  then  withdrawn,  the  well  sand-pumped,  and 
preparations  made  for  the  next  "run."  With  the  old 
fashioned  temper-screw,  a  great  deal  of  time  was  spent  in 
readjustment,  for  it  had  to  be  screwed  up  thread  by  thread, 
by  tedious  revolutions  of  the  clamps.  But  this  delay  is 
now  obviated.  The  nut  through  which  the  screw  passes  is 
cut  in  halves,  one  half  being  attached  to  the  left  wing  of 
the  screw  frame,  the  other  half  to  the  right  wing.  An 
elliptical  band  holding  the  set-screw,  Z',  passes  around  the 
nut.  It  is  riveted  securely  to  one  of  the  halves,  and  the 
set-screw  presses  against  the  other  half  to  keep  the  nut 
closed.  The  wings  are  so  adjusted  that  they  spring  out- 
ward and  open  the  nut  whenever  the  set-screw  is  loosened. 
To  "  run  up  "  the  screw,  the  driller  clasps  the  wings  in  his 
left  hand,  and  loosens  the  set-screw ;  he  then  seizes  the 
head  of  the  temper-screw  in  his  right  hand,  and,  relaxing 
his  grip  upon  the  wings,  the  nut  opens,  when  he  quickly 
shoves  the  screw  up  to  its  place,  again  grips  the  wings  and 
tightens  the  set-screw — the  whole  performance  occupying 
less  time  than  it  has  taken  to  describe  it. 

But  as  this  is  heavy  work,  even  for  a  man  of  great 
strength,  some  inventive,  and  probably  unmuscular  driller 
has  recently  added  a  very  clever  improvement  which  merits 
a  passing  notice.  In  the  top  of  the  screw  is  fixed  a  small 
swivel,  and  in  the  crotch  of  the  wings  above  it  a  small  pul- 
ley ;  a  cord  passes  from  the  eye  of  the  swivel  over  the  pul- 
ley, and  thence  over  two  similar  pulleys  placed  on  the 
under  side  of  the  walking-beam,  and  the  end  of  the  cord 
suspends  a  weight  about  equal  to  the  weight  of  screw  and 
clamps.  As  the  screw  runs  down  the  weight  rises,  and 
when  it  is  to  be  run  up  again,  this  counterbalance  carries 
it  up  to  its  place,  requiring  but  little  assistance  from  the 
driller. 


302  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

§  535.  Dimensions  of  Drilling  Tools,  Plate  XVI. 
Pins,  each,  3"  long,  2f"  diameter,  8  threads  to  an  inch. 
Collars,  each,  3"  long,  4£"  diameter. 
Length  of  boxes— auger-stem,  10";  ring  socket,  6";  others, 
8". 

Diameter  of  boxes — auger-stem,  4£"  ;  others,  4i". 

Square  shoulders,  3i"X3i". 

Diameter  of  auger-stem  and  sinker-bar,  3£". 

Length  in  detail. 

Rope-socket,  Wings, 2'  6"    ^ 

'  Square  shoulder, 0' 4"    £     3' 6" 

Box, 0'8"    . 

Sinker-bar,    Collar, 0' 3"    s 

Bar, 17'  1"    >   18'  0" 

Box, 08') 

Jars,  ....  Collar, 0'  3"    j 

Links,  (open,) 6'  5"    £     7' 4" 

Box, 0'  8"    J 

Auger-stem,  Collar, 0'  3"    j 

Stem, 28'  11"  V   30'  0'' 

Box, 0'  10"  ) 

Center-bit,     Collar, 0'  3"    > 

Bit, 3'  0"    $     ' 

Total  length  of  "string"  of  tools,     62' 1" 

Temper. screw. — The  ironside  pieces  or  wings  are  l^'xt" 
and  4'  6"  long.  The  screw  is  If "  in  diameter,  4'  long  ; 
square  thread  ;  two  threads  to  an  inch.  Sometimes  a 
double  thread,  three  to  an  inch,  is  cut. 

§  536.  A  wing  rope  socket  to  be  secured  to  the  cable  by 
rivets,  is  shown  in  fig.  d.  Other  styles  have  been  invented, 
which  are  tubular  in  form,  and  have  a  central  opening  pass- 
ing through  them  smaller  at  the  top  than  at  the  bottom. 
The  end  of  the  cable  is  passed  through  the  tube  and  fitted 
into  clamps,  which  wedge  and  hold  it  firmly  without  riv- 
ets, when  it  is  drawn  back  into  the  tapering  sleeve.  Many 
contractors  prefer  to  use  the  patent  sockets,  because  they 
have  suffered  from  loss  of  tools  by  breaking  the  wings  or 
rivets  of  the  other  kind.  Let  me  explain  why  these  breaks 
occur.  Usually  the  end  of  the  cable  to  be  inserted  in  the 
wings  is  simply  wrapped  with  marline  and  forced  into  its 
place,  when  the  rivets  are  hastily  driven  and  clinched  down 


DRILLING  TOOLS.  III.  303 

on  an  anvil.  This  is  all  wrong,  as  a  moment's  thought  will 
show.  The  end  of  a  new  cable  is  less  firm,  and  contains 
more  stretch  than  other  parts  of  it,  and  being  thus  thought- 
lessly crowded  into  the  socket,  the  result  is  that  the  upper 
rivet  must  take  all  the  strain  alone,  and  bend  or  break  be- 
fore the  stretch  in  the  rope  will  allow  the  others  to  render 
it  any  effective  support.  To  prove  this,  take  a  socket  thus 
prepared  for  the  rivets,  and  put  in  the  lower  one  only.  Fit 
it  in  one  of  the  wrenches  firmly  secured  behind  the  sam- 
son-post ;  attach  the  cable  to  the  band- wheel  shaft,  and  let 
two  or  three  men  put  a  heavy  strain  upon  it,  when  it  will 
be  seen  that  the  part  in  the  socket  has  stretched  an  inch  or 
two,  and  reduced  so  much  in  size  that  the  coils  of  wrapping 
slip  loosely  upon  it.  The  cable  should  be  under  a  strain 
like  this  while  it  is  being  wrapped.  Then  after  the  lower 
rivet  has  been  put  in  it  should  be  again  subjected  to  ten- 
sion and  held  so  while  the  upper  rivet  is  being  driven. 
After  this  it  may  be  released,  and  the  center  rivets  be  put 
in  and  clinched  in  the  usual  way.  I  know  from  experience 
that  a  socket  put  on  in  this  way  can  be  depended  upon 
under  all  circumstances. 

§  537.    Weight  of  drilling  tools. 

Rope-socket,       80  pounds. 

Sinker-bar,  3J,',     540  pounds. 

Jars,  5 1", 320  pounds. 

Auger-stem,  3^", 1020  pounds. 

Bit, 140  pounds. 

Total  weight  when  "  strung  up, " 2100  pounds. 

The  other  parts  of  the  set  weigh  as  follows  : 

Temper  screw, 145  pounds. 

Jars  for  8"  hole,     ...              .   .              565  pounds. 

Two  bits  for  8"  hole,  (each  160  pounds,) 320  pounds. 

Reamer,               .                                180  pounds. 

Two  bits  for  5i"  hole  (each  140  pounds), 280  pounds. 

Reamer  for  51"  hole,    .  • 140  pounds. 

Ring-socket,     .       . 50  pounds. 

Two  wrenches,  (each  105  pounds,) 210  pounds. 

Total  weight  of  complete  set, 3990  pounds. 


304  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Cost  of  drilling  tools. 

Rope-socket, $20  00 

Sinker-bar, 38  00 

Jars,  5|",      •    • 110  00 

Auger-stem, 60  00 

Two  bits,  5i", 75  00 

One  reamer,  5jj" 33  00 

Two  wrenches, 24  00 

Temper  screw, 40  00 

Ring-socket 15  00 

Total  cost  for  51"  tools, $417  00 

Additional  for  tJie  8"  hole  at  the  top. 

Jars,  8",          $140  00 

Two  bits,  8", 85  00 

One  reamer,  8", 50  00 


275  00 
Total  cost  of  complete  set, f692  00 

§  538.  Materials. 

The  sinker-bar  and  auger-stem  are  made  of  rolled  iron, 
collars  and  boxes  of  hammered  iron,  and  pins  of  Norway 
iron. 

The  jars  are  faced  with  steel  on  the  inside  wearing  sur- 
faces and  in  the  crotches,  the  other  parts  are  of  Norway 
iron. 

The  lower  half  of  reamers  and  bits  are  made  of  the  best 
steel,  the  upper  half  of  Norway  iron. 

All  of  the  above  facts  in  relation  to  drilling  tools  were 
kindly  furnished  by  the  Ames  Manufacturing  Company  of 
Titusville,  Pa. 

Preparing  to  drill  and  drilling. 

§  539.  "Spudding" — With  rig  put  in  complete  running 
order  and  conductor  sunk  to  bed-rock,  the  contractor  is 
now  ready  to  commence  to  drill.  But  the  common  boring 
tools  are  about  60  feet  long  and  therefore  cannot  be  operated 
by  the  walking-beam  in  the  usual  way  until  the  hole  is  deep 
enough  to  allow  them  to  sink  beneath  the  derrick  floor. 
He  must  "spud"  the  first  sixty  feet,  then,  without  the  aid 
of  the  walking-beam.  To  do  this  a  short  cable  is  run  up 
over  the  crown  pulley  in  the  top  of  the  derrick.  One  end 


SPUDDING.  III.  305 

of  it  is  attached  to  the  ring-socket  and  screwed  to  the  auger- 
stein,  the  other  is  passed  around  the  bull-wheel  shaft  two 
or  three  times  and  the  end  left  free.  The  bull-rope  is  now 
put  on  and  the  engine  started.  A  man  stationed  in  front 
of  the  bull-wheels,  seizes  the  free  end  of  the  rope  coiled 
around  the  shaft,  a  slight  pull  causes  the  coils  to  tighten 
and  adhere  to  the  revolving  shaft,  the  auger-stem  rises  in 
consequence  until  it  hangs  suspended  in  the  derrick,  when 
it  is  swung  over  the  hole  and  lowered  through  tho  conduc- 
tor to  the  rock.  The  engine  is  kept  running  and  the  bull- 
wheels  revolve  all  the  while,  but  the  man  holding  the  shaft- 
rope  has  full  control  of  the  tools.  When  he  pulls  on  the 
rope,  the  coils  at  once  ''bight"  the  revolving  shaft,  the  tools 
rise,  when  he  gives  his  rope  slack  they  fall,  and  so  long  as 
the  coils  remain  loose  upon  the  shaft  it  revolves  smoothly 
within  them  and  communicates  no  motion  at  all.  Thus, 
then,  alternately  pulling  and  slacking  the  rope,  this  ani- 
mated substitute  for  a  walking-beam  raises  and  drops  the 
tools  as  much  or  as  little  as  may  be  required,  while  the 
driller  turns  the  drill  to  insure  a  round  hole.* 

§  540.  Drimnrj  Pipe. — When  a  conductor  cannot  be  dug 
to  the  rock,  and  drive-pipe  is  to  be  inserted,  a  mall  and 
"guides"  must  be  provided  for  the  purpose.  The  mall  is 
made  of  any  tough,  hard  log,  that  will  dress  15  or  18  inches 
square,  and  10  or  12  feet  long.  Two  sides  only  are  dressed  ; 
one  end  being  rounded  and  encircled  by  a  heavy  iron  band 
to  prevent  its  splitting,  the  other  having  a  strong  staple 
driven  into  it  to  tie  the  cable  in.  Two  pairs  of  wooden  pins 
are  put  in  each  of  the  dressed  sides,  one  pair  near  the  top, 
the  other  pair  near  the  bottom  ;  they  are  two  inches  apart, 
and  two  inches  long,  and  serve  instead  of  grooves  in  the 
mall — the  guides  fitting  in  between  them. 

To  erect  the  guides,  draw  a  line  on  the  derrick  floor, 
through  the  center  of  the  well  and  at  right  angles  to  the 
walking-beam  ;  on  this  line  place  two  2-inch  plank  perpen- 

*  Sometimes  connections  are  made  with  the  walking-beam  at  a  less  depth 
by  using  a  short  auger-stem  and  the  jars  without  a  sinker-bar  above  them,  but 
a  description  of  every  variation  from  the  general  plan  of  drilling  cannot  be 
attempted.  The  intention  here,  is  simply  to  describe  the  usual  modus  oper- 
andi. 

20  ITT. 


306  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

dicularly  and  stay  them  securely  at  the  bottom  and  from 
the  sides  of  the  derrick.  They  are  to  be  15  or  18  inches 
apart,  according  to  the  width  of  the  mall  to  be  used,  and 
may  be  continued  upward  by  adding  two  or  three  more 
plank,  as  circumstances  require.  They  are  strengthened 
by  spiking  a  narrower  plank  on  each  side,  leaving  the  cen- 
ter one  projecting  a  couple  of  inches  to  enter  between  the 
pins  in  the  mall. 

After  spudding  awhile,  as  above  described,  to  prepare 
the  way  for  the  drive-pipe,  the  drill  is  set  aside — the  pipe 
to  be  driven,  armed  at  the  bottom  with  a  steel  shoe,  as  shown 
in  Fig.  3,  Plate  XIV,  is  put  in  place — the  mall  is  attached 
to  the  spudding  cable  and  let  down  between  the  guides, 
where  it  is  alternately  raised  and  dropped  upon  the  casing 
or  drive  pipe  by  the  man  at  the  bull- wheels,  precisely  the 
same  as  in  spudding.  The  casing  used  is  of  wrought  iron, 
screwed  together  in  thimbles  the  same  as  tubing.  A  heavy 
cap  of  iron  is  screwed  in  the  top  when  driving,  to  prevent 
its  being  injured  by  the  blows  of  the  mall. 

When  two  or  three  hundred  feet  of  pipe  are  to  be  driven, 
as  is  frequently  the  case  in  some  of  our  northern  valleys, 
it  requires  a  great  deal  of  skill  and  judgment  to  put  it  in 
successfully.  In  these  deep  drivings,  after  a  sufficient  depth 
has  been  reached  to  admit  of  the  introduction  of  a  string 
of  tools,  they  are  put  in  and  operated  by  the  walking-beam 
in  the  usual  way  ;  the  cable  (a  short  one,  tarnished  for  the 
purpose)  being  coiled  upon  one  end  of  the  bull- wheel  shaft, 
while  the  other  end  is  left  free  to  work  the  mall-rope  on. 
To  facilitate  the  necessary  changes  which  must  be  made 
every  time  the  drill  is  stopped  and  pipe  driven,  the  lower 
part  of  the  guides  are  cut  and  hung  on  hinges  some  10  or 
12  feet  above  the  derrick  floor,  and  when  not  in  use  may  be 
swung  up  overhead  out  of  the  way  of  the  workmen. 

§  541.  "Stringing"  the  Tools.—  When  a  sufficient  depth 
has  been  reached  by  spudding  to  admit  of  the  introduction 
of  a  full  "string  of  tools,"  the  spudding  machinery  is 
abandoned. 

Now  the  coil  of  drilling-cable  is  rolled  into  the  derrick 
and  set  upon  end.  The  free  end  in  the  centre  of  the  coil  is 


DRILLING.  III.   '307 

tied  by  a  connecting  cord  to  the  rope  just  detached  from 
the  ring-socket,  and  by  it  drawn  up  over  the  crown-pulley 
and  down  to  the  bull- wheel  shaft,  where  it  is  fastened  ;  the 
bull-rope  is  put  in  place  ;  the- engine  started,  and  the  men 
carefully  watch  and  guide  the  cable  as  it  is  wound  coil  after 
coil  smoothly  and  solidly  upon  the  shaft.  When  this  is 
done  the  end  of  the  cable  depending  from  the  crown-pulley 
is  secured  to  the  rope-socket,  as  above  described,  and  the 
full  set  of  tools  are  attached  and  swung  up  in  the  derrick. 
After  carefully  screwing  up  all  the  joints,  (the  bull-rope 
having  been  unshipped,)  the  tools  are  lowered  into  the  hole 
by  means  of  the  bull- wheel  brake,  cc.  The  band-wheel 
crank  is  then  turned  to  the  upper  center ;  the  pitman  is 
raised  and  slipped  upon  the  wrist-pin,  where  it  is  secured 
by  the  key  and  wedges  ;  the  temper-screw  is  hung  upon 
the  walking-beam  hook ;  the  slack  in  the  cable  is  taken  up 
by  the  bull- wheels  until  the  jars  are  known  to  be  in  proper 
position ;  the  clamps  are  brought  around  the  cable  (after  a 
wrapper  has  been  put  on  it  at  the  point  of  contact,*)  and 
securely  fastened  by  the  set-screw  ;  the  cable  is  slacked  off 
from  the  bull-wheels,  and  the  tools  are  now  held  suspended 
in  the  well  from  the  walking-beam  instead  of  from  the  top 
of  the  derrick,  as  before.  Some  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  of 
slack  cable  should  be  pulled  down  and  thrown  upon  the 
floor  to  give  free  movement  to  the  drill.  When  the  drill  is 
rotated  in  one  direction  for  some  time  the  slack  coils  around 
the  cable  at  the  well  mouth ;  if  it  becomes  troublesome  the 
motion  is  reversed  and  it  uncoils.  Only  by  this  constant 
rotation  of  the  drill  can  a  round  hold  be  insured. 

§  542.  Drilling. — Having  now  made  all  the  necessary 
connections,  it  only  remains  to  give  the  engine  steam,  and 
the  drill  will  rise  and  fall  with  each  revolution  of  the  band- 
wheel,  and  commence  its  aggressive  work  upon  the  rocks 
below. 

*  A  small  handful  of  untwisted  strands  of  cable,  say  two  feet  long,  is  gen- 
erally used  for  a  "wrapper."  It  is  quickly  wound  tightly  round  and  round 
the  cable  with  a  greater  thickness  at  the  upper  part  of  the  clamps  than  at  the 
bottom.  This  prevents  their  slipping  and  preserves  the  cable,  which  must 
be  cautiously  protected  from  harm  above  ground,  or  it  will  be  unsafe  to  use 
when  the  defective  parts  have  entered  the  hole. 


308  III.        JIEPORT  OF  PKOGKESS.       JOHN  F.   CAttLL. 

From  this  point  downward  the  daily  routine  of  the  work 
is  very  monotonous  unless  some  accident  occurs  to  diversify 
it.  l3ay  and  night  the  machinery  is  kept  in  motion.  One 
driller  and  one  engineer  and  tool-dresser  work  from  noon 
until  midnight,  (the  "afternoon  tour,")  and  another  pair 
from  midnight  until  noon,  (the  "  morning  tour.")  Up  and 
down  goes  the  walking-beam,  while  the  driller,  with  a  short- 
lever  inserted  in  the  rings  of  the  temper-screw,  walks  round 
and  round,  first  this  way  then  that,  to  rotate  the  drill.  He 
watches  the  jar,  and  at  proper  intervals  lets  down  the  tem- 
per-screw as  the  drill  penetrates  the  rock.  When  the  whole 
length  of  the  screw  has  been  "  run  out,"  or  the  slow  pro- 
gress of  the  drill  gives  warning  that  it  is  working  in  hard 
rock  and  needs  sharpening,  he  arranges  the  slack  cable 
upon  the  floor  so  that  it  will  go  up  freely  without  kinks, 
and  informs  the  engineer  that  he  is  ready  to  "  draw  out." 

§543.  "Drawing  the  Tools" — After  attending  to  the 
needful  preliminaries,  the  driller  throws  the  bull-rope  upon 
its  pulley,  and  quickly  steps  to  the  bull- wheel  brake,  while 
the  engineer  commands  the  throttle  of  the  engine.  The 
walking -beam  and  the  bull- wheel  are  now  both  in  motion, 
but  at  the  proper  moment  one  man  stops  the  engine,  and 
the  other  holds  the  bull- wheels  with  the  brake — just  when 
all  the  slack  cable  has  been  taken  up,  and  the  weight  of  the 
tools  is  thus  transferred  from  the  temper-screw  to  the 
crown-pulley.  This  is  a  performance  requiring  experience 
and  good  judgment,  for  should  any  blunder  be  made  a 
break-down  must  certainly  result.  To  loosen  the  clamps 
on  the  cable,  and  unlock  the  pitman  from  the  wrist-pin  and 
lower  it  to  the  main-sill,  is  but  the  work  of  a  moment. 
Dropping  the  pitman  raises  the  end  of  the  walking- beam 
with  the  temper-screw  attached  to  it,  and  throws  them  back 
from  their  former  perpendicular  over  the  hole,  so  as  to 
allow  the  cable  and  tools  to  run  up  freely  without  interfer- 
ence with  them.  Steam  is  now  turned  on  again,  and  the 
tools  come  up.  When  the  box  of  the  auger-stem  emerges 
from  the  hole,  the  engine  is  stopped.  A  wrench  is  slipped 
on  the  square  shoulder  of  the  bit,  and  the  handle  dropped 
behind  a  strong  pin  fixed  for  that  purpose  in  the  floor  ; 


DRILLING.  III.  309 

another  wrench  is  put  on  the  shoulder  of  the  auger-stem  ; 
a  stout  lever  is  inserted  in  one  of  a  series  of  holes  bored  in 
the  derrick  floor  in  a  circle  having  a  radius  a  little  less  than 
the  length  of  the  wrench  handle,  it  is  brought  up  firmly 
against  the  upper  wrench  handle,  thus  making  a  compound 
lever  of  the  wrench,  and  greatly  increasing  its  power.  Both 
men  give  a  hearty  pull  on  the  lever,  which  "breaks  the 
joint,"  or,  in  other  words,  loosens  the  screw  joint  connect- 
ing the  bit  with  the  auger-stem,  so  that  the  bit  can  be  un- 
screwed and  taken  off  by  hand  after  it  has  been  brought  up 
above  the  derrick  floor.  The  wrenches  are  then  thrown  off, 
steam  is  let  on  again,  the  bit  rises  from  the  hole.  Now  the 
driller  throws  off  the  bull-rope  by  operating  a  lever  with 
one  hand,  *  while  with  the  other  he  catches  the  bull-wheel 
with  the  brake,  holding  the  tools  suspended  a  few  inches 
above  the  derrick  floor.  At  the  same  instant  the  engineer 
shuts  off  steam,  or  else  suddenly  relieved  of  its  heavy  work 
by  unshipping  the  bull-rope,  the  engine  would  "run  away  " 
with  lightning  speed.  It  only  remains  now  to  hook  the 
suspended  tools  over  to  one  side  of  the  derrick,  and  the 
hole  is  free  for  the  sand-pump. 

While  the  driller  is  sand-pumping,  the  engineer  unscrews 
the  worn  bit  and  replaces  it  by  one  newly  dressed,  so  that 
there  may  be  no  delay  in  running  the  tools  into  the  well 
again  when  sand-pumping  is  ended. 

§  544.  Sand  pumping. — The  "line"  to  which  the  sand- 
pump  is  attached  (as  before  described)  passes  up  over  a 
pulley  near  the  top  of  the  derrick  arid  thence  down  to  the 
sand -pump  reel,  which  is  operated  from  the  derrick  by 

*  A  piece  of  plank  five  or  six  feet  long,  on  one  end  of  which  three  or  four 
short  pieces  are  spiked  one  on  top  of  the  other,  until  it  has  a  thickness  of 
about  ten  inches,  with  a  hole  for  the  pivot  near  the  center,  and  another  for  a 
hand  rope  in  the  other  end,  makes  a  very  simple  contrivance  for  unshipping 
the  bull-rope.  A  stout  pin  is  put  in  the  derrick  floor,  say  two  feet  from  the 
bull-wheel,  and  in  a  line  toward  the  well  mouth,  and  on  this  the  lever  is  piv- 
oted. As  the  rope  plays  near  the  floor,  and  travels  toward  the  wheel,  a  pull 
on  the  hand  rope  presses  the  thick  end  of  the  lever  against  the  bull-rope,  and 
being  thrown  out  of  line,  it  runs  off  of  its  pulley  and  drops  upon  the  bull- 
wheei  shaft.  When  the  bull-rope  is  thus  thrown  off,  the  weight  of  the  tools 
would  instantly  reverse  the  motion  of  the  wheels,  and,  therefore,  the  driller 
operates  the  lever  with  one  hand  and  the  brake  with  the  other,  catching  the 
wheels  with  the  brake  at  the  instant  the  bull-rope  falls. 


310  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CAELL. 

means  of  hand-lever,  v  and  connecting  levers,  u  and  t. 
While  sand-pumping  the  pitman  remains  disconnected,  the 
bull-rope  lies  slack  on  its  pulleys  and  the  band-wheel  is 
kept  constantly  in  motion.  A  slight  pressure  on  lever  v 
brings  the  friction  pulley  w  in  contact  with  the  band- 
wheel,  and  the  pulley  immediately  revolves,  the  slack 
sand-pump  line  is  quickly  wound  up  and  the  sand-pump, 
which  is  usually  left  standing  at  one  side  of  the  derrick, 
swings  out  to  the  center  and  commences  to  ascend,  just  now 
the  lever  is  thrown  back  and  the  connection  between  the 
friction  pulley  and  the  band-wheel  being  thus  broken  the 
sand-pump  commences  to  descend  into  the  well  by  its  own 
gravity.  If  it  be  likely  to  attain  too  great  speed  in  its  de- 
scent, a  movement  of  the  lever  to  bring  the  pulley  either 
forward  against  the  band-wheel,  or  backward  against  the 
brake  post  previously  mentioned,  will  quickly  check  it, 
and  thus  the  speed  may  be  regulated  at  will. 

As  soon  as  the  pump  strikes  bottom,  additional  steam  is 
given  to  the  engine,  and  the  lever  is  brought  forward  and 
held  firmly  while  the  sand-pump  rises  rapidly  from  the 
well.  The  sand-pump  is  usually  run  down  several  times 
after  each  removal  of  the  tools,  to  keep  the  bottom  of  the 
hole  free  from  sediment  so  that  the  bit  may  have  a  direct 
action  upon  the  rock. 

§  545.  Drilling  resumed. — After  the  hole  has  been  suf- 
ficiently cleansed,  the  sand-pump  is  set  to  one  side,  the 
drilling  tools  are  unhooked,  and  swinging  to  their  place  over 
the  well  mouth  are  let  down  a  short  distance  by  the  brake, 
the  wrenches  are  put  on  and  the  lever  is  applied  to  "set 
np"  the  joint  connecting  the  replaced  bit  to  the  auger-stem. 
Then  removing  the  wrenches,  the  tools  are  allowed  to  run 
down  to  the  bottom  under  control  of  the  bull- wheel  brake. 
Connections  are  now  made  as  before,  the  driller  commences 
his  circular  march,  the  engineer  examines  the  steam  and 
the  water  gauges  and  the  fire,  and  then  proceeds  to  sharpen 
the  tool  required  for  the  next  "run,"  and  thus  the  wrork 
goes  on  from  day  to  day  until  the  well  is  completed. 


CHAPTEE  XXIX. 

(Illustrated  by  Plates  XIV,  XIV bis,  XV and  XXXJX.) 

Different  methods  of  drilling  and  pumping  oil  wells  from 
1861  to  1878.  Progressive  improvements.  Relative  cost 
of  wells,  &c. 

§  546.  Every  oil  well  shaft  is  naturally  divisible  into 
tliree  sections :  First,  unconsolidated  deposits — surface  clay 
and  gravel.  Second,  stratified  rocks  containing  more  or 
less  water — shales  and  sandstones.  TTiird,  stratified  rocks 
seldom  water  bearing — slates,  mud  rocks,  shales  and  sand- 
stones, including  the  oil  sands  of  the  different  districts. 

The  first  division  always  requires  a  conductor-pipe  or 
casing  of  some  kind  to  prevent  caving.  It  varies  in  thick- 
ness in  different  localities  from  four  feet  to  four  hundred 
feet,  the  deepest  accumulations  always  being  found  in  val- 
leys. 

The  second  division  requires  no  support  for  the  walls, 
but  must  be  cased  to  prevent  the  water  contained  in  it  from 
following  the  drill  down  to  the  oil  sand.  Its  thickness  may 
be  one  hundred,  or  six  or  seven  hundred  feet,  depending  on 
location. 

In  the  third  division  the  bare  rocks  form  the  well-wall, 
and  it  is  not  an  unusual  occurrence  to  pierce  a  thickness  of 
ten  or  fifteen  hundred  feet  of  these  strata  without  encount- 
ering enough  water  to  supply  the  ordinary  demands  of  the 
sand-pump.  In  Watson's  deep  well  at  Titusville,  3300  feet 
feet  of  the  wall  was  bare  rock,  but  water  had  to  be  poured 
in  at  the  top  to  moisten  the  drillings. 

Therefore  each  of  these  divisions  must  be  considered  sepa- 
rately in  describing  the  well  shaft  and  its  appurtenances. 

(  311  III.  ) 


312  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

§  547.  On  Plate  X/Tthe  reader  will  find  sectional  draw- 
ings of  three  oil  wells  representing  different  periods  and 
designed  to  show  the  improvements  made  in  the  style  of 
drill-hole  and  also  in  its  furniture  since  the  year  1861. 

As  the  horizontal  and  vertical  scales  of  the  drawings  are 
the  same,  (j$  of  nature,)  the  sections  necessarily  show  but 
a  mere  fraction  of  the  total  length  of  an  ordinary  well,  for 
to  thus  fully  represent  one  only  1500  feet  deep,  would  re- 
quire a  roll  of  paper  75  feet  long. 

TJie  "surface  section'1''  shows  about  4  feet  of  the  well 
shaft  below  the  derrick  floor,  and  7  feet  of  the  well  fittings 
above  it,  and  is  intended  mainly  to  explain  the  details  above 
ground. 

The  "bottom  of  drive-pipe  section"  shows  about  4^  feet 
of  the  well  shaft  at  the  junction  of  the  superficial  deposits 
with  the  bed-rock,  being  the  termination  of  the  first  divi- 
sion mentioned  at  the  head  of  this  chapter. 

The  "seed-bag  section"  shows  about  5£  feet  at  the  junc- 
tion of  the  water-bearing  and  non-water-bearing  rocks, 
being  the  termination  of  the  second  division  as  aforesaid. 

The  "bottom  section"  shows  about  10^  feet  of  the  oil 
sand,  being  the  termination  of  the  third  division  and  bot- 
tom of  the  well. 

The  artist's  representations  of  shale,  sandstone,  &c.,  are 
merely  illustrative,  and  not  by  any  means  typical. 

§  548.  TJie  three  cross  sections  of  well  mouths  drawn  to 
natural  scale  (see  Plate  14,  bis.)  will  materially  assist  one 
in  understanding  the  details  of  conductor,  drive-pipe,  cas- 
ing, tubing,  sucker-rods,  &c.,  as  seen  in  the  wells  on  Plate 
XIV. 

No.  1  belongs  to  the  well  of  1861,  No.  2  to  the  well  of 
1868,  and  No.  3  to  the  well  of  1878.  As  these  drawings 
represent  "the  actual  dimensions  of  the  drill  holes  and  all 
the  materials  belonging  to  them  that  can  be  seen  in  cross 
sections  of  the  well  mouths,  they  present  the  facts  in  a 
very  clear  and  comprehensible  manner,  and  need  no  further 
comment. 


DRILLING  AND  PUMPING  OIL  WELLS.  III.  313 


Fig.  No.  l.—  Well  of  1861. 

§  549.  The  primitive  style  of  drilling  and  tubing  an  oil 
'well  is  illustrated  in  Fig.  No.  1,  Plate  XIY.  It  shows  a 
simple  wooden  conductor*  with  a  4-inch  "wet  hole"  con- 
tinuing down  below  it  to  the  oil  sand,  and  a  string  of  tub- 
ing having  an  old  fashioned  seed-bag  attached  to  it. 

By  this  method  of  drilling,  as  the  hole  was  generally 
nearly  filled  with  water  from  the  gravel-beds,  and  kept  so 
by  it  and  accessions  from  lower  water-courses,  it  was  not 
possible  to  note  exactly  where  the  lowest  water-vein  was 
passed ;  consequently  the  point  for  seed-bagging  became  a 
matter  of  doubt,  and  frequently  the  tubing  had  to  be  drawn 
several  times  to  change  the  position  of  the  seed-bag,  before 
the  water  could  be  effectually  shut  off. 

It  is  desirable  always  to  stop  the  water  as  near  as  possi- 
ble to1  the  bottom  of  the  stratum  where  it  enters  the  well, 
for  if  it  be  allowed  to  pass  down  the  shaft  below  the  imper- 
vious rocks  immediately  underlying  its  natural  horizon,  it 
may  find  access  into  some  more  porous  stratum  beneath  it, 
and  pass  through  into  and  flood  adjoining  wells  which  are 
seed-bagged  in  a  higher  geological  plane. 

§550.  In  preparing  to  tube  a  "wetlwle"  the  point  at 
which  the  seed-bag  is  to  be  placed  must  first  be  decided 
upon.  Suppose  it  to  be  300  feet  from  the  bottom.  Then 
the  tubing  is  carefully  measured  joint  by  joint,  and  300  feet 
(less  the  length  of  the  working-barrel,  and  whatever  dis- 
tance is  to  be  left  between  it  and  the  bottom  of  the  well,f) 
is  placed  in  a  pile  upon  the  derrick  floor.  The  working- 

*  The  conductor  plank  in  Fig.  1,  is  shown  by  scale  as  one  inch  thick.  It 
should  have  been  two  inches. 

f  Sometimes  the  working-barrel  was  put  20  or  30  feet,  or  even  more,  from 
the  bottom  of  the  well,  on  the  theory  that  the  pump  worked  more  effectively 
when  placed  as  near  as  possible  to  the  point  at  which  the  oil  was  supposed  to 
come  in.  But  this  resulted  in  many  expensive  accidents,  for  if  the  tubing 
chanced  to  part  above,  it  would  be  ruined  by  so  great  a  fall.  To  prevent  this 
an  anchor,  or  piece  of  perforated  tubing  of  the  proper  length  should  be  put 
below  the  working-barrel,  reaching  to  within  three  inches  of  the  bottom,  and 
thus,  while  the  tubing  hangs  suspended  from  the  top,  (which  keeps  it  much 
straighter  than  if  it  rested  on  the  bottom,)  it  cannot  fall  to  its  injury  if  a  break 
occurs  in  it. 


314  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F-  CARLL. 

barrel  is  first  put  in  the  well  and  held  by  clamps  fitting 
under  the  thimble ;  then  a  swivel  attached  to  the  tubing 
cable,  which  runs  up  over  the  crown-pulley  and  down  to 
the  bull- wheels,  is  screwed  into  a  joint  of  tubing,  and  it  is 
elevated  and  screwed  fast  to  the  working-barrel ;  the  clamps 
are  opened  to  allow  the  thimble  to  pass,  and  the  tubing  is 
lowered  into  the  well  until  the  upper  thimble  rests  upon 
the  clamps  ;  the  swivel  is  unscrewed  and  put  into  another 
joint,  which  is  manipulated  in  the  same  manner,  and  thus 
the  work  of  tubing  goes  on  until  the  point  for  seed- bagging 
has  been  reached.  Now  a  pause  is  made  and  a  leather  bag 
like  a  boot-leg,  two  or  three  feet  long,  and  when  expanded 
exactly  fitting  the  well  bore,  is  slipped  over  the  tubing  and 
securely  fastened  to  it  by  wrapping  its  lower  end  with  cord. 
The  wrapping  is  put  immediately  under  a  thimble,  to  pre- 
vent the  bag  from  slipping  up  as  it  goes  into  the  well,  for 
if  the  bag  be  a  little  too  large,  or  a  contracted  spot  occurs 
in  the  shaft,  the  tubing  may  have  to  be  forced  down  occa- 
sionally by  levers  at  the  top.  After  the  bottom  has  been 
tied,  the  bag  is  packed  with  common  flaxseed,  and  a  ring 
having  the  same  diameter  as  the  well  bore  is  passed  over  it 
to  make  sure  that  it  is  of  proper  size.  The  top  is  then  tied 
like  the  bottom,  but  not  so  securely  (for  it  is  designed  to 
break  loose  here  and  turn,  when  the  tubing  is  to  be  drawn 
out,)  and  it  is  lowered  into  the  hole  by  adding  the  remain- 
der of  the  tubing  joint  by  joint,  as  before,  until  the  amount 
required  to  place  the  seed-bag  in  the  position  designed  has 
been  put  in,  when  the  head-block  is  screwed  up,  the  clamps 
are  permanently  secured  beneath  the  thimble  by  inserting 
the  safety-bolt,  and  the  tubing  is  ready  to  receive  the 
sucker-rods. 

§  551.  The  sucker-rods  are  introduced  in  a  similar  man- 
ner to  the  tubing ;  but  as  the  tubing  is  full  of  water,  which 
the  rods  must  displace  and  cause  to  flow  over  at  the  top  as 
they  descend,  they  can  frequently  be  inserted  the  first  time 
by  hand,  without  the  assistance  of  pulley-rope  or  swivel. 
Indeed,  when  they  are  dry  and  somewhat  crooked  they  re- 
quire considerable  downward  pressure  to  overcome  the 
buoyancy  of  water  and  friction  against  the  tubing.  After 


DKILLING  A1SD  PUMPING  OIL  WELLS.  III.  315 

the  rods  are  in  and  connections  with  the  walking-beam 
made,  the  well  is  left  over  night  to  allow  the  seed-bag  time 
to  moisten  and  swell  so  that  it  may  fit  sungly  to  the  walls 
of  the  well. 

§  552.  When  the  pump  is  started,  it  can  draw  its  supply 
only  from  the  well  chamber  below  the  seecl-bag,  if  the  latter 
is  effective  and  accomplishes  the  purpose  intended.  Hence 
(provided  there  are  no  water  veins  below  the  seed-bag)  the 
water  is  soon  pumped  out  from  the  bottom  of  the  well,  the 
oil-rock  is  relieved  from  its  pressure,  and  the  oil  and  gas 
now  meeting  with  no  opposition,  come  into  the  chamber 
and  pass  up  through  the  tubing  as  the  water  exhausts. 

§  553.  Very  grave  defects  were  soon  discovered  in  this 
method  of  managing  oil  wells.  Ordinary  wear  and  tear  of 
machinery  or  accidental  break-downs  often  made  necessary 
the  removal  of  the  tubing  before  repairs  could  be  made, 
and  this  could  not  be  done  without  disturbing  the  seed-bag 
and  again  letting  down  the  surface  water  in  full  force  upon 
the  oil-rock.  In  new  wells  and  new  territory  this  might  be 
fraught  with  little  damage;  but  in  an  old  district,  after 
large  bodies  of  oil  had  been  drawn  from  the  sandrock,  it 
often  proved  disastrous.  Consequently  some  plan  had  to 
be  devised  whereby  the  tubing  could  be  withdrawn  at 
pleasure  without  disturbing  the  seed-bag,  and  the  first  one 
adopted  was  to  shut  the  water  off  by  inserting  3^-inch 
casing,  as  will  be  described  below.  ' 


Fig.  No.  %.—  Wells  of  1868. 

§  554.  No  great  changes  were  made  in  the  style  of  drill 
hole  or  the  methods  of  drilling  between  the  years  1861  and 
1868.  All  parts  of  the  machinery  and  tools  employed  were 
made  heavier  and  stronger,  of  course,  for  the  shafts  were 
larger  and  deeper,  but  the  wells  of  1868  were  still  drilled 
as  before,  through  a  simple  drive  pipe  or  conductor,  the 
holes  being  full  of  water  while  drilling,  and  remaining  so 
until  the  pumping  machinery  was  put  in  motion. 


316  III.        KEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOIIX  F.  CARLL. 

Fig.  2  shows  a  cast  iron  drive  pipe*  instead  of  a  wooden 
conductor,  through  which  a  plain  5£  inch  hole  was  sunk  to 
the  oil  rock. 

§  555.  To  introduce  the  3-J"  inch  casing  was  the  first  step  in 
preparing  to  tube  a  well  of  this  date.  On  the  bottom  of  it 
was  affixed  the  seed-bag,  and  consequently  the  length  of 
casing  required  depended  upon  the  distance  the  base  of  the 
water  bearing  rocks  lay  below  the  suface.  In  some  wells 
one  hundred  feet  would  suffice,  in  others  three  or  four 
hundred  were  necessary.  Sometimes  an  ordinary  seed-bag 
was  used,  and  sometimes  a  patent  water-packer  consisting 
of  a  heavy  iron  ring  a  quarter  of  an  inch  smaller  than  the 
size  of  the  hole,  supporting  a  leather  cup  similar  to  the 
leathers  on  the  cup  valve  used  in  the  pump  barrel.  The 
rim  of  the  cup  is  thrown  open  and  held  against  the  walls 
of  the  well  by  static  pressure  as  soon  as  the  water  below 
it  commences  to  exhaust. 

But  as  the  casing  was  a  permanent  fixture  intended  to  re- 
main in  place  for  years,  or  as  long  as  the  well  lasted,  many 
well  owners  preferred  to  put  on  both  styles  of  seed-bags 
one  above  the  other  as  shown  in  Fig.  2. 

*The  following  note  from  Report  II,  page  136,  may  very  properly  be  re- 
printed here : 

"  Where  it  is  suspected  that  the  floor  of  the  drift  lies  too  deep  to  be  reached 
by  digging,  cast  iron  "  drive-pipe  "  is  used.  This  pipe  is  cast  in  sections  about 
9'  long.  A  space  of  4"  at  each  end  is  carefully  turned  in  a  lathe  to  a  certain 
gauge,  and  the  end  is  cut  smoothly  at  right  angles  to  the  axis  of  the  pipe,  so 
that  the  joints  will  stand  perpendicularly  one  upon  the  other.  A  joint  of  pipe  is 
placed  on  end  in  the  center  of  the  derrick  between  two  "  guides,"  which  have 
been  temporarily  erected  for  the  purpose  of  driving  it.  A  heavy  "mall" 
working  between  these  guides  is  raised  and  dropped  upon  the  pipe,  slowly 
forcing  it  into  the  ground,  precisely  as  pile?  are  driven  for  docks,  bridges,  &c. 
When  the  top  of  a  joint  has  been  driven  to  the  level  of  the  derrick  floor  a  band 
of  wrought  iron,  made  to  fit  the  turned  ends  of  the  pipe,  and  heated  red  hot, 
is  quickly  slipped  upon  the  end  of  the  driven  pipe  and  another  joint  at  once 
set  up.  The  contraction  of  this  band  in  cooling  holds  the  two  joints  firmly 
together,  and  the  driving  process  then  goes  on.  In  this  way  joint  after  joint 
is  added  and  driven  until  solid  rock  is  reached.  As  many  as  23  joints  have 
been  used  in  a  well.  Great  care  is  required  when  so  long  a  "  string  of  pipe  " 
is  driven  to  keep  it  straight  and  perpendicular,  a  broken  bank,  or  a  large 
bowlder  encountered  may  cause  the  pipe  to  so  far  deviate  from  the  perpen- 
dicular as  to  necessitate  the  abandonment  of  the  well.  To  avoid  this  the  pipe 
should  be  frequently  cleaned  out  by  the  drill  while  being  driven. 


DEILLING  AND  PUMPING  OIL  WELLS.  III.  317 

The  casing-head  was  screwed  to  the  top  of  the  casing  and 
formed  a  substantial  hea.d  block  for  the  tubing  to  rest  upon. 
It  was  very  similar  to  the  one  shown  in  Fig.  a,  Plate 
XXXIX. 

§  556.  Tubing. — The  work  of  casing  completed,  the  next 
step  was  to  insert  the  tubing.  As  the  inside  diameter  of 
casing  was  3^  inches,  and  the  outside  diameter  of  tubing 
thimbles  or  collars  2f  inches,  the  latter  moved  freely  inside 
of  the  former,  and  could  be  put  in  quickly,  there  being  no 
delay  for  seed-bagging,  and  no  measurements  necessary. 
An  anchor  was  put  below  the  working-barrel,  and  the  tub- 
ing added  on  until  it  struck  bottom,  when  a  mark  was 
made  on  the  tube  projecting  from  the  well  mouth,  and  the 
whole  string  drawn  up  again  to  the  first  thimble.  After 
taking  off  the  first  joint,  another  of  proper  length,  with  the 
casing  flange  attached  to  its  top  was  substituted  for  it,  so 
that  when  lowered  again  into  the  well  the  tubing  would  be 
suspended  from  the  casing  head,  and  the  anchor  swing  just 
clear  of  the  bottom. 

§  557.  Pumping. — If  the  seed-bag  proved  effective,  the 
space  between  tubing  and  casing  was  quickly  relieved  of 
water  when  the  pump  was  put  in  motion,  and  as  its  sur- 
face lowered  in  the  well  a  partial  vacuum  formed  above  it, 
as  was  plainly  demonstrated  by  the  force  with  which  the 
air  rushed  into  the  well  chamber  on  opening  the  stop  cock 
at  the  casing-head.  When  the  water  surface  drew  down 
below  the  oil  vein,  a  reaction  occurred  ;  the  well  chamber 
quickly  filled  with  gas  and  oil,  the  former  turbulently  seek- 
ing an  exit  at  the  casing-head,  while  the  latter  was  drawn 
into  the  pump  barrel  as  the  water  at  the  bottom  exhausted, 
and  gradually  filling  the  tubing  from  the  bottem  expelled 
the  water  at  the  top,  and  made  its  appearance  at  the  deliv- 
ery pipe  in  due  time. 

§  558.  Water  Pump. — In  situations  where  water  was 
needed  for  boiler  use,  a  £  inch  pipe  and  pump  were  run 
down  between  the  casing  and  well- wall  into  the  water 
chamber  above  the  seed-bag.  Its  little  sucker-rod  of  £ 
inch  pipe  or  of  iron  rods  was  attached  by  a  clamp  to  the 


318  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN"  F.   CARLL. 

polished  rod  *  of  the  oil  well,  and  thus  by  working  con- 
stantly furnished  all  the  water  required. 

§  559.  Defects  in  these  methods  of  managing  wells. — 
Although  the  well  of  1868  was  a  great  improvement  over  the 
well  of  1861,  still  it  did  not  meet  all  the  requirements  of 
the  situation.  In  deep  shafts  the  presence  of  water  in  the 
hole  greatly  retarded  the  speed  of  drilling,  and  it  was  real- 
ized that  a  column  of  water  a  thousand  or  fifteen  hundred 
feet  in  height  must  have  an  injurious  effect  upon  the  oil 
rock.  Experience  proved  also  that  many  accidents  were 
possible  which  necessitated  the  drawing  of  the  casing  be- 
fore the  wells  could  be  put  in  running  order  ;  for  the  cased 
part  being  only  3£  inches  in  diameter,  and  that  below  it  5£ 
inches,  adequate  fishing  tools  could  not  be  introduced  when 
any  serious  accident  happened  from  dropping  tubing,  &c. 
And  again,  if  the  well  needed  to  be  cleaned  out  or  sunk 
deeper  only  a  3£  inch  hole  could  be  drilled,  and  that  with 
tools  necessarily  so  light  that  the  work  was  slow  and  un- 
satisfactory. These  and  other  considerations  naturally  led 
to  the  experiment  of  drilling  through  large  casing,  and  this 
was  found  to  be  so  great  an  improvement  over  the  old  plan 
that  it  soon  entirely  superseded  it. 

jy0m  3.—  Wells  of  1878. 

§  560.  This  well  differs  from  the  last  described  in  many 
particulars.  Its  drive-pipe  consists  of  an  eight  inch  wrought 

*The  polished  rod  is  a  bar  of  cold  rolled  iron  12'  long  and  li"  in  diameter, 
having  on  one  end  a  box  to  fit  the  sucker-rod  pins,  and  on  the  other  a  thread 
for  a  swivel.  In  conjunction  with  the  adjuster,  it  affords  a  ready  means  for 
connecting  the  sucker-rods  to  the  walking-beam  without  the  delay  of  cutting 
the  rods  to  the  exact  length  required.  The  adjuster  is  attached  by  its  bear- 
ing to  the  walking- beam,  and  by  means  of  set  screws  can  be  clamped  immov- 
ably to  the  polished  rod  at  any  point,  when  it  becomes  a  cross  head  pivoted 
upon  the  walking-beam,  and  supporting  and  operating  the  sucker-rods  in  the 
well.  After  the  sucker-rods  are  put  in  the  tubing,  and  the  working-valve 
rests  upon  the  standing-box  at  the  bottom,  the  upper  joint  of  rods  may  pro- 
ject above  the  well  mouth  a  few  inches  or  three  or  four  feet.  The  walking- 
beam  is  now  put  in  position,  and  the  polished  rod  is  run  u  p  through  the  adj  uster 
and  screwed  to  the  sucker-rods.  Then  by  means  of  the  sucker-rod  rope  and 
swivel  on  top  of  the  polished  rod,  the  whole  string  of  rods  is  raised  as  much 
as  is  required  to  give  the  necessary  play  between  the  pump  valves,  when  the 
polished  rod  is  clamped  in  the  adjuster,  the  swivel  is  detached  and  the  well 
is  ready  to  puinp. 


DRILLING  AND  PUMPING  OIL  WELLS.  III.   319 

iron  tube  armed  at  the  bottom  with  a  steel  shoe  and  driven 
to  the  rock  as  described  in  the  previous  chapter.  The  8 
inch  jars,  bit  and  reamer,  mentioned  among  the  drilling 
tools  are  employed  while  sinking  this  pipe.  After  it  has 
been  driven  to  bed  rock  the  8  inch  hole  is  continued  down 
to  the  base  of  the  water  bearing  strata,  one,  two,  or  three 
hundred  feet  as  the  case  may  be,  when  drilling  is  suspended 
and  another  tube  5f  inches  in  diameter,  (technically  called 
"the  casing.")  is  inserted.  Before  stopping  to  case,  how- 
ever, the  bits  are  drawn  down  gradually  to  reduce  the 
diameter  of  the  hole  from  8  inches  to  5£  inches,  thus  form- 
ing a  beveled  shoulder  for  the  casing  to  rest  upon,  into 
which  the  collar  fitted  to  the  bottom  of  the  casing  for  that 
purpose,  is  ground  and  seated  by  revolving  the  casing  a  few 
times  while  it  is  resting  on  the  bottom.  This  usually  pro- 
duces a  water-tight  joint,  but  if  a  little  sand-pump  sedi- 
ment be  thrown  in  between  the  casings  it  will  settle  at  the 
bottom  and  make  the  joint  still  more  secure. 

After  casing,  the  8  inch  jars  and  bits  are  laid  aside  for 
the  regular  5£  inch  tools,  which  pass  freely  through  the 
casing  and  cut  a  hole  of  that  diameter  to  the  bottom  of  the 
well. 

Quite  frequently  veins  of  water  are  encountered  after  a 
well  is  cased,  and  if  it  does  not  exhaust  by  sand-pumping, 
drilling  is  stopped,  the  casing  drawn,  the  hole  reamed  out  to 
8  inches  and  more  casing  put  in.  In  new  territory  where 
the  depth  of  the  water-bearing  rocks  is  not  known,  this 
'  operation  may  have  to  be  repeated  several  times.  As  wells 
are  now  drilled,  a  contractor  is  not  allowed  to  continue  his 
work  unless  he  succeeds  in  effectually  shutting  off  all  water 
before  striking  the  oil  rock. 

§561.  Deep  "wet  wells"  seldom  give  much  show  of  oil 
either  on  tools  or  in  the  sand-pump  while  drilling,  and  it 
is  only  after  they  are  tubed  and  exhausted  of  water  that 
the  oil  makes  its  appearance.  But  in  dry  cased  wells,  the 
moment  a  vein  of  oil  is  tapped  it  gives  notice  of  its  presence 
and  frequently  flows  out  at  the  surface  before  the  tools  can 
be  drawn.  Thousands  of  dollars  have  been  spent  in  testing 
hopelessly  unproductive  wells  that  were  drilled  "wet,"  be- 


320  III.        REPORT  OF  PKOGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

cause  it  could  not  be  known  until  they  were  tubed  and 
tested,  whether  they  contained  oil  or  not.  But  with  dry 
casing  the  owner  knows  when  the  well  is  finished  whether 
it  will  be  productive  or  not,  and  all  the  testing  required  can 
be  done  with  a  sand-pump.  Thus  a  considerable  item  of 
expense  is  saved  to  the  operator  who  is  so  unfortunate  as 
to  get  a  genuine  "dry  hole"  or  "duster." 

§562.  The  average  cost  of  drilling  cased  wells,  (especially 
if  we  take  into  account  the  reduced  liability  to  accidents 
from  tool  sticking,  &c.,)is  probably  but  little  if  any  greater 
than  .it  would  be  if  they  were  drilled  wet.  The  additional 
expense  of  boring  an  8  inch  hole  two  or  three  hundred  feet, 
and  the  increased  cost  for  large  casing,  is  often  fully  offset 
by  the  time  and  money  saved  in  more  speedily  drilling  the 
remainder  of  the  well.  Quite  an  item  in  the  cost  of  fuel  is 
also  sometimes  realized,  for  a  vein  of  gas  may  be  struck 
several  hundred  feet  from  the  bottom  of  the  well,  which 
will  fire  the  boiler  until  the  work  is  finished.  * 

§  563.  Some  of  the  obvious  advantages  which  a  cased  well 
has  over  the  well  of  1868  are  these : 

Fishing  operations  can  be  successfully  prosecuted,  for 
the  bore  is  of  the  same  size  all  the  way  down. 

A  deep  hole,  five  and  a  half  inches  in  diameter,  can  be 
carried  on  down  without  letting  the  surface  water  in. 

Torpedoes  can  be  put  in  safely  and  with  better  efect. 

The  water -packer  can  be  introduced  on  the  tubing  at 

*  When  gas  is  obtained  from  the  upper  rocks  in  sufficient  quantity  to  fur- . 
nish  fuel  for  the  boiler  during  the  remainder  of  the  drilling,  it  is  conveyed  to 
the  boiler  through  a  two-inch  pipe,  connected  with  the  casing  beneath  the 
derrick  floor,  as  seen  in  Fig.  3.  Just  before  this  gas-pipe  enters  the  fire-box, 
a  quarter-inch  steam-pipe  from  the  boiler  passes  into  it  through  a  tee,  and 
terminates  in  a  quarter-inch  elbow,  which  is  thus  held  in  the  center  of  the 
two-inch  pipe.  Another  piece  of  quarter-inch  pipe,  with  the  opening  in  one 
end  reduced  to  Jess  than  an  eighth  of  an  inch,  is  then  screwed  into  the 
elbow  with  the  reduced  end  pointing  toward  the  fire-box.  When  steam  is 
let  into  the  small  pipe,  it  vents  in  the  center  of  the  gas-pipe  and  forms  an 
"injector,-'  which  forces  a  current  of  gas  and  steam  into  the  fire-box,  while 
the  draft  occasioned  by  it  in  the  lead-pipe,  draws  in  the  pas  from  the  well, 
although  the  well  mouth  is  entirely  open,  and  also  prevents  all  danger  from 
"back  suction."  Without  an  "injector"  the  burning  gas  is  liable  to  run 
back  through  the  delivery  pipe  to  the  well  mouth,  where  it  will  explode  and 
set  the  rig  on  tire, 


DRILLING  AND  PUMPING  OIL  WELLS.  III.  321 

any  point  desired,  either  to  confine  the  oil  and  gas  and  in- 
duce them  to  flow,  or  simply  to  prevent  the  seepings  of  salt 
water  which  sometimes  come  in  below  the  casing  in  quan- 
tities so  small  as  to  be  scarcely  noticed  while  drilling,  from 
reaching  the  bottom  of  the  well,  to  the  detriment  of  its 
oil-production. 


Geological  Sections. — Plate  XV. 

§  564.  Placing  this  plate  by  the  side  of  Plate  XIV,  we 
see  that  the  geological  structure  of  the  areas  operated  upon 
at  different  periods  has  largely  directed  and  influenced  im- 
provements in  the  methods  of  drilling  and  the  appliances 
for  pumping  oil  wells.  The  system  of  operating  which 
met  the  requirements  of  the  situation  in  1861,  would  have 
been  worse  than  useless  in  the  deep  territory  of  1878.  The 
problem  forced  upon  the  oil  producers  has  been  how  to  ac- 
complish a  greater  depth  of  drilling  without  increasing  the 
cost  of  his  well ;  and  it  has  been  worked  out  with  such 
success  by  the  thousands  of  energetic,  inventive  minds,  en- 
gaged in  the  business,  that  the  average  cost  to-day  of  a 
well  1500  feet  deep  is  less  than  one  of  500  feet  was  in  1861, 
and  our  present  wells  are  also  much  more  fully  equipped, 
and  with  a  better  class  of  machinery. 

§  565.  A  little  profile  section  at  the  bottom  of  Plate  XV 
shows  that  the  additional  depth  of  drilling  was  not  required 
alone  on  account  of  a  greater  altitude  of  areas  drilled  upon, 
but  was  due  mainly  to  the  southwesterly  dip  of  the  oil 
sands. 

§  566.  Geographical  positions  of  the  vertical  sections. — 
Section  No.  I  is  typical  of  the  geological  structure  on  Oil 
creek,  near  the  celebrated  Noble  well ;  No.  2,  of  the  higher 
table  lands  at  Pleasantville ;  and  No.  3  is  made  from  the 
record  of  Button  well,  No.  4,  near  Petrolia,  in  Butler 
county. 

The  distance  from  No.  1  to  No.  3  is  about  36  miles.    The 

well  mouth  of  No.  3  is  only  324  feet  JiigJier  above  ocean 

level  than  the  well  mouth  of  No.  1 ;  but  the  oil  sand  of  No. 

3  is  846  feet  lower  than  the  oil  sand  of  No.  1.     Therefore 

21  III. 


322  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

over  70  per  cent,  of  the  additional  depth  of  drilling  is  oc- 
casioned by  the  dip  of  the  oil  sand. 

Page  Plate  No.  XXXIX. 

§  567.  Explanation  of  Figures — Illustrating  some  of  the 
details  of  oil-well  machinery  mentioned  in  the  preceding 
pages: 

Cost. 

a,  Casing  head  for  5£  in.  casing, $7  65 

6,  Sand-puinp  pulley, 3  25 

c,  Working-barrel,  extra  heavy  brass,  13"  dia.  (for  2"  tub- 

ing), 5  feet  long,    ...       21  75 

d,  Upper  valve  for  1J  in.  chamber, 7  50 

e,  Lower  valve  for  1J  in.  chamber, 4  00 

/,  Water-pump  and  valves,  1  in.  dia., 14  75 

ff,  Rivet  catcher,     2  35 

A,  Bull-rope  couplings,  3  holes,  for  \\"  rope, 1  33 

Bull-rope  couplings,  4  holes,  for  2i"  rope, 1  90 

i,  Armor's  water  packer, 21  35 

k,  Jars.    See  Chapt.  XXVIII. 

The  cuts  and  price-list  are  taken  from  catalogue  of  Jar- 
ecki  Manufacturing  company,  dated  1876.  It  will  be  seen 
that  some  of  these  prices  vary  considerably  from  those 
given  in  "cost  of  well  at  Bradford,"  in  1878,  when  well 
fittings  were  down  to  their  lowest  figures. 

§  568.  The  rivet-catcher  is  a  perforated  cup,  to  be  at- 
tached to  the  valve  stem  above  the  valve,  and  is  designed 
to  catch  broken  rivets,  in  case  any  should  work  out  of  the 
sucker-rod  joints,  and  prevent  them  falling  upon  the  work- 
ing valve,  where  they  would  quickly  wedge  and  score  the 
working-barrel — spoiling  it,  perhaps,  for  future  use,  before 
the  pumper  was  aware  that  anything  was  wrong. 

§  569.  The  water -packer  only  came  into  general  use  about 
the  year  1875.  It  is  one  of  the  several  improvements  upon 
the  old-fashioned  seed-bag,  made  possible  by  and  naturally 
following  the  use  of  dry  casing  in  wells.  Its  design  is  to 
prevent  any  water  that  may  seep  into  a  well  below  the 
casing,  from  gaining  access  to  the  oil  sand,  and  to  stop  the 
ascent  of  gas  on  the  outside  of  the  tubing.  The  oil  and 
gas  are  thus  confined  in  the  well  chamber,  below  the  water- 
packer,  and  the  diameter  of  the  tube  through  which  they 


DRILLING  AND  PUMPING  OIL  WELLS.  III.  323 

must  pass  to  reach  the  surface,  is  reduced  from  5|-  inches 
to  2  inches.  As  a  result,  many  wells  flow  when  treated  in 
this  way,  that  otherwise  would  require  pumping. 

A  number  of  patented  packers  are  in  use.  The  one  shown 
above  is  simple  in  construction  and  effective  in  operation. 
It  is  made  of  malleable  iron  and  rubber.  The  top  piece,  1, 
is  connected  with  the  bottom,  3,  by  a  slip-joint,  the  upper 
tube,  1,  passing  through  the  rubber  band,  2,  and  sliding 
inside  of  the  lower  tube,  3.  Fig.  i  shows  the  packer  open  ; 
to  close  it  as  in  the  well,  the  top  is  shoved  down  so  that 
the  flange  of  1,  rests  upon  the  rubber  band,  2.  This  forces 
the  cone  into  the  rubber  band  and  compresses  it  against 
the  well  walls,  and  causes  the  lower  part  of  1  to  project  be- 
low 3,  and  on  this  projecting  end  of  1  is  affixed  the  work- 
ing-barrel, when  one  is  to  be  used.  To  1  is  attached  the  2" 
tubing  reaching  up  to  the  well  mouth,  and  to  3,  the 
"anchor"  extending  down  to  the  bottom  of  the  well.  The 
length  of  ik anchor"  decides,  of  course,  the  point  at  which 
the  well  will  be  packed,  for  when  it  strikes  bottom  the 
weight  of  tubing  above  the  packer  telescopes  the  slip-joint, 
expands  the  rubber  and  shuts  off  all  communication  be- 
tween the  annular  space  outside  of  the  tubing  above  the 
packer  and  the  well  chamber  below  it. 

§  570.  The  "  ancJior  "  is  made  of  a  piece  of  perforated 
3J"  casing,  say  6'  long  (it  must  be  long  enough  to  receive 
the  working  barrel.)  This  is  screwed  on  to  3.  A  reducer 
is  inserted  in  the  bottom  of  the  casing,  and  a  proper  amount 
of  2"  tubing  is  added  to  make  the  anchor  of  the  requisite 
length. 

§  571.  "Packed  Wells."— A.  large  number  of  wells  in  the 
Bradford  district  are  ''packed"  in  this  manner  at  the  top  of 
the  oil  sand,  and  they  flow  periodically  several  times  a  day 
without  requiring  any  attention,  for  months  at  a  time,  ex- 
cept to  watch  the  receiving  tank  which  quickly  tells  when 
a  falling  off  in  production  occurs  and  an  "  overhauling"  is 
necessary. 

Cost  of  an  Oil  Well  in  1878.     Bradford  District. 
§  572.  An  extensive  oil  producer  in  Bradford,  McKean 


324  III.        EEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

county,  gives  the  following  figures  in  detail  to  represent 
the  actual  cost  of  drilling  and  equiping  an  oil  well  in  De- 
cember, 1878.  But  it  should  be  understood  that  this  was 
a  period  when  both  labor  and  well  machinery  were  at  their 
lowest  values : 

Carpenter's  rig,  complete, §350 

Belt,  bull-rope,  engine  "telegraph,"  water  pipes,  steam  pipes 

and  fittings  to  connect  boiler  and  engine,  100 

Boiler,  (20-horse  power,)  and  engine,  (15-horse  power,)  on 

ground,  750 

Contract  for  drilling,  contractor  to  furnish  fuel,  tools,  cable, 

sand,  pump  line,  <fec.,  at  65  cents  per  foot,  say  1500',  ....  975 

Casing  say  300',  at  80  cents  per  foot, 240 

Tubing,  say  1600',  at  20  cents  per  foot,  320 

Torpedo,  (almost  universally  used  before  tubing,) 100 

Packer, 25 

Working  barrel, 8 

Casing  head, 3 

Tees  and  elbows  to  make  tank  connections,  5 

One  twenty-five  barrel  tank,  .  .  25 

One  two  hundred  and  fifty  barrel  tank,  110 

Tank  house, 25 

Expense  of  tubing  and  packing  well,  20 

Expense  for  hauling  tubing,  material,  &c.,  say, 50 

Total  cost  of  well,  flowing, $3,106 

In  the  above  well  no  "drive  pipe"  was  used,  a  short 
wooden  conductor  set  by  the  rig  builder  being  all  that  was 
required.  In  localities  where  from  100'  to  280'  of  drive  pipe 
casing,  costing,  $1  80  per  foot  is  required,  the  cost  of  a  well 
is  increased  accordingly. 

§  573.  If  the  well  is  to  be  pumped  the  following  items  are 
to  be  added  : 

1500  feet  of  sucker  rods  @5i  cents, $82  50 

Valves  for  working  barrel, 7  00 

Polished  rod, 2  50 

Stuffing  box, 1  50 

Adjuster, 5  00 

Tees  and  elbows,  <fec.,  say, 2  00 


$100  50 


§  574.  The  necessary  tools  and  implements  for  handling 
the  tubing  and  sucker-rods,  are — 

Large  pulley  block, Ill  00 

Tubing  elevators 9  00 

Three  pairs  of  tuLl^g  tongs, 10  00 


DRILLING  AND  PUMPING  OIL  WELLS.  III.  325 

Tubing  cable, 25  00 

Sucker-rod  rope, 11  00 

Sucker-rod  wrenches  and  elevators, 3  50 

Cost  of  an  Oil   Well  1865-1872.     Butler  District. 

§  575.  The  following  figures,  taken  from  the  ledger  of  a 
company  which  operated  largely  on  the  Butler  belt,  will 
convey  a  very  good  idea  of  the  relative  cost  of  drilling  oil 
wells  from  1865  to  1872  : 

Year.        Well.    Depth.  How  drilled.  Cost. 


1865 

No.  1, 

1120r 

By  day's  work,  i 

&11,069  84 

1866 

2, 

1400' 

do.         do. 

11,441  94 

1868 

3> 

1111' 

do.         do. 

6,116  16 

1870 

4, 

1262' 

do.         do.       .   .   '.   

10,405  62 

1870 

5, 

1105' 

do.         do  

7,827  88 

1871 

6, 

1290' 

Drilling  contract,  $3,500,  

8,132  86 

1871 

7, 

1414' 

do.                  3,500,       .      ..,  . 

8,401  41 

1871 

8, 

1345' 

do.                  3,600,    

9,017  80 

1871 

9, 

1065' 

Everything  furnished  by  contract, 

5,750  00 

1872 

10, 

1300 

Everything,$6,700;  extras,  $317  12, 

7,017  12 

1872 

11, 

1200' 

Everything,  6,300;  extras,    380  95, 

6,630  95 

1872 

12, 

1212' 

By  day's  work,         

6,557  04 

1872 

13. 

1402' 

do.        do. 

6.671  06 

Nos.  9,  10  and  11  were  put  down  by  contract ;  the  con- 
tractor in  each  case  to  furnish  the  rig,  boiler,  and  engine, 
casing,  tubing,  and  sucker-rods — and  to  drill  the  well  to 
the  oil  rock  and  tube  and  test  it  for  the  price  named.  The 
extras  are  for  drilling  deeper  after  finding  the  oil  sand  un- 
productive. 

Torpedoes. 

§  576.  Torpedoes  have  been  so  often  referred  to  in  these 
pages,  and  they  are  now  employed  so  generally  in  oil  wells 
as  socn  as  drilling  is  completed,  and  before  the  tubing  is 
inserted,  that  it  seems  proper  to  close  the  details  of  drilling 
and  pumping  with  a  short  account  of  the  invention,  and  a 
description  of  the  manner  in  which  it  is  applied. 

The  following  quotations  from  k'The  Early  and  Late  His- 
tory of  Petroleum,"  by  J.  T.  Henry,  1873,  are  presumed  to 
contain  the  facts  in  relation  to  its  early  history,  as  the  ar- 
ticle was  prepared  under  the  eye  of  the  inventor. 

"In  1862,  Col.  E.  A.  L.  Roberts,  then  an  officer  in  the 


326  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

volunteer  service,  and  with  his  regiment  in  the  army  of  the 
Potomac,  in  front  of  Fredericksburg,  conceived  the  idea  of 
exploding  torpedoes  in  oil  wells,  for  the  purpose  of  increas- 
ing the  production.  He  made  drawings  of  his  invention, 
and  in  November,  1864,  made  application  for  letters  patent. 
In  the  fall  of  the  same  year  he  constructed  six  torpedoes, 
and  on  the  2d  of  January,  1865,  he  visited  Titusville  to 
make  his  first  experiment.  Col.  Roberts'  theory  was  re- 
ceived with  general  disfavor,  and  no  one  desired  to  test  its 
practicability  at  the  risk,  it  was  supposed,  of  damaging  a 
well.  On  the  21st  of  January,  however,  Col.  R.  persuaded 
Capt.  Mills  to  permit  him  to  operate  on  the  Ladies'  well, 
on  Watson  Flats,  near  Titusville.  Two  torpedoes  were  ex- 
ploded in  this  well,  when  it  commenced  to  flow  oil  and  par- 
affine.  Great  excitement  of  course  followed  this  successful 
experiment,  and  brought  the  torpedo  into  general  notice. 
The  result  was  published  in  the  papers  of  the  oil  region, 
and  fiVe  or  six  applications  for  patenting  the  same  inven- 
tion were  immediately  filed  at  Washington.  Several  suits 
for  interference  were  commenced,  which  lasted  over  two 
years,  and  decisions  in  all  cases  were  rendered  declaring 
Col.  Roberts  the  original  inventor. 

"  Notwithstanding  the  success  of  the  first  experiment, 
operators  were  still  very  skeptical  as  to  the  practical  ad- 
vantages of  torpedoes,  and  it  was  not  till  the  fall  of  1865 
that  they  would  permit  the  inventor  to  operate  in  their 
wells  to  any  extent,  from  fear  that  the  explosion  would  fill 
them  with  rock,  and  destroy  their  productiveness. 

"In  December,  1866,  however,  Col.  R.  exploded  a  torpedo 
in  what  was  known  as  the  '  Woodin  Well,'  on  the  Blood 
farm.  This  well  was  a  'dry  hole,'  never  having  produced 
any  oil.  The  result  of  the  operation  secured  a  production 
of  twenty  barrels  per  day,  and  in  the  following  month, 
January,  1867,  a  second  torpedo  was  exploded,  which 
brought  up  the  production  to  eighty  barrels.  This  estab- 
lished for  the  torpedo,  beyond  question,  all  that  Col.  Roberts 
had  claimed,  and  immediately  the  demand  for  them  became 
general  throughout  the  region." 

This  historical  sketch  is  followed  by  a  tabular  statement 


TORPEDOES.         '  III.  327 

showing  the  effects  of  the  first  thirty-nine  torpedoes  ex- 
ploded, and  giving  the  names  and  locations  of  the  wells  in 
which  they  were  used.  According  to  this  statement,  the 
flow  of  six  of  these  wells  was  greatly  increased — the  small- 
est to  the  extent  of  125  barrels,  the  largest  200  barrels — 
while  the  others  ranged  from  four  to  ninety  barrels.  In 
the  aggregate  the  thirty -nine  torpedoes  caused  an  increased 
production  of  2227  barrels,  or  an  average  of  over  fifty-seven 
barrels  per  well.  It  must  not  be  understood,  however,  that 
this  increase  was  permanent ;  for  although  wells  may  flow 
or  pump  freely  immediately  after  being  torpedoed,  in  a  few 
weeks  or  months,  at  most,  they  will  drop  back  to  their  natu- 
ral production  again. 

§  577.  The  torpedo  as  first  used  consisted  of  a  simple  tin 
case  or  shell  filled  with  gunpowder,  and  having  a  percus- 
sion cap  fixed  in  the  upper  end  of  the  case  in  such  a  man- 
ner that  a  slight  blow  upon  it  would  cause  an  explosion. 
It  was  lowered  into  the  well  by  a  cord  or  wire,  and  held 
suspended  at  a  point  in  the  sandrock  where  the  oil  was  be- 
lieved to  enter.  When  in  proper  position,  a  cylindrical 
weight  through  which  the  wire  passed,  was  dropped  from 
the  well-mouth,  and  guided  by  the  wire,  fell  upon  the  cap 
and  exploded  the  charge.  The  water  in  the  hole  acted  as 
tamping,  confining  the  effects  of  the  explosion  to  the  imme- 
diate vicinity  of  the  torpedo,  and  thus  excellent  results 
were  obtained. 

Since  then  every  kind  of  explosive  has  been  employed, 
and  every  device  which  ingenuity  could  invent  has  been 
tried  by  parties  endeavoring  to  introduce  rival  torpedoes 
without  infringing  upon  the  first  patent.  But  all  these 
efforts  have  failed.  The  Roberts'  patent  has  been  sustained 
in  every  contest  in  the  courts  and  the  original  torpedo  with 
such  improvements  as  practical  experience  has  suggested  is 
the  only  one  now  in  use. 

But  nitro-glycerine  has  been  substituted  for  gunpowder, 
dynamite,  and  other  explosives,  it  being  more  easily  intro- 
duced and  more  certain  in  its  effects.  The  charges  exploded 
in  deep  wells  to-day  are  enormous  when  compared  with 
those  of  a  few  years  ago.  Formerly  a  shell  holding  from 


328  III.      EEPOKT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN"  F.  CARLL. 

two  to  ten  quarts  was  considered  a  good  shot,  but  now  from 
thirty  to  sixty  quarts  (100  to  200  fes.)  are  required.  The 
shells  or  cases  containing  the  explosive  are  sometimes  over 
twenty  feet  long  ;  but  large  charges  are  generally  inserted 
in  sections.  If,  for  instance,  the  oil  sand  is  thirty  feet  thick, 
and  it  is  desired  to  cover  the  whole  of  it  with  one  explosion, 
the  process  will  be  something  like  this  :  Take  a  case,  say 
fifteen  feet  long,  and  attach  an  "anchor"  on  the  bottom 
corresponding  in  length  to  the  depth  of  the  well-pocket  be- 
low the  oil  sand.  Introduce  the  case  into  the  hole,  and 
holding  it  suspended  at  the  well  mouth,  fill  it  with  water. 
Then  pour  in  the  nitro-glycerine  until  the  water  has  been 
displaced  and  the  shell  is  full.  Lower  this  carefully  by  the 
torpedo  wire  to  the  bottom  of  the  well  and  unhook  from  it, 
thus  leaving  it  standing  upon  the  bottom  and  covering  the 
lower  fifteen  feet  of  the  sandrock.  Now  fill  another  shell 
in  the  same  manner,  and  in  the  top  of  it  affix  the  device  con- 
taining the  percussion  cap  to  explode  the  charge.  Lower 
this  also  into  the  well,  and  when  it  rests  upon  the  one 
already  put  in,  unhook  the  wire  and  withdraw  it.  *  Nothing 
now  remains  to  be  done  but  to  drop  into  the  well  a  weight 
made  for  that  purpose  and — run  ;  for  sometimes  these  ex- 
plosions, even  at  a  depth  of  1SOO  feet  or  more,  are  followed 
by  a  discharge  of  water,  oil,  mud,  and  broken  rocks — some 
pieces  of  which  are  nearly  the  full  size  of  the  well-bore — 
which  shoots  up  higher  than  the  top  of  the  derrick,  and 
makes  it  disagreeably  exciting  to  those  who  happen  to  be 
too  near  when  the  miscellaneous  shower  comes  down.  With 
nitro-glycerine  the  firing  of  one  charge  explodes  all  the 
others  in  the  well,  and  hence  a  large  surface  of  rock  can  be 
covered  by  it  with  more  ease  and  certainty  than  it  could  if 
any  other  explosive  were  used. 

§  578.  The  simplicity  of  the  torpedo,  and  the  method  of 
introducing  and  exploding  it,  and  a  desire  to  evade  the 
payment  of  the  large  profit  or  royalty,  demanded  by  the 

*In  cased  holes  containing  but  little  fluid,  it  is  necessary  to  withdraw  the 
wire  before  the  shell  is  exploded,  otherwise  it  is  driven  up  into  a  wad  and  de- 
stroyed. In  this  shape  it  may  lodge  somewhere  in  the  well  and  cause  con- 
siderable delay  in  removing  it  before  the  tubing  can  be  inserted. 


TORPEDOES.  III.  329 

Roberts'  Torpedo  Company,  (but  which  royalty,  after  all, 
does  not  seem  so  extortionate  when  the  immense  advantage 
the  invention  has  been  to  the  oil  producer  and  the  extremely 
hazardous  nature  of  the  business  are  taken  into  considera- 
tion,) have  induced  many  well-owners  to  buy  the  materials 
and  prepare  their  own  torpedoes.  These  are  secretly  put 
into  the  wells  at  night  by  professionals  called  "moonlight- 
ers," who  follow  the  business  of  inserting  them,  charging 
from  five  to  ten  dollars  for  their  services.  But  this  kind  of 
work  generally  ends  in  an  injunction  from  the  court,  and  a 
costly  settlement  with  the  torpedo  company. 

Another  shrewd  way  of  defrauding  the  patentee  has  been 
practiced  to  a  considerable  extent  by  using  what  has  been 
appropriately  named  a  "sleeper."  An  operator  orders 
from  the  torpedo  company  a  small  ten-quart  shot,  to  be  put 
in  on  a  certain  day,  "just  to  stir  up  the  well  a  little."  He 
then  procures  a  case  and  say  thirty  quarts  of  nitro-glycerine 
from  some  of  the  "moonlight  manufacturers,"  and  secretly 
lowers  it  to  the  bottom  of  the  well  some  time  during  the 
night  previous  to  the  day  appointed.  When  the  compariy"s 
agent  arrives  everything  is  in  readiness  for  him,  and  he 
quickly  shoots  off  his  ten-quart  shell  and  goes  away,  little 
thinking  that  he  has  exploded  forty  quarts  of  nitro-glycer- 
ine in  the  well,  while  the  company  receives  their  royalty 
only  on  ten. 


330    III.       REPORT   OF  PROGRESS.    JOHN  F.   CARLL. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

On  the  Glacial  Drift. 

§  579.  Many  curious  and  interesting  facts  relating  to  the 
Drift  deposits*  of  northwestern  Pennsylvania  presented 
themselves  to  notice  at  the  commencement  of  the  present 
survey. 

Heavy  surface  accumulations  were  frequently  met  with 
by  oil  miners  where  least  expected,  both  on  ridges  and  in 
valleys.  The  beds  of  streams  north  of  the  main  range  of 
outcropping  carboniferous  conglomerate  were  found  to  be 
more  deeply  filled  with  Drift  than  their  southern  outlets ; 
and  it  often  happened  in  these  northern  valleys  that  a  con- 
ductor hole  could  be  dug  to  bed  rock  in  one  well,  while  a 
hundred  feet  or  more  of  drive-pipe  would  be  required  in 
another  but  a  few  rods  from  it. 

What  might  be  the  significance  of  these  facts,  with  others 
bearing  upon  the  topography  and  drainage  of  the  country, 
no  one  could  tell ;  for  they  were  then  too  meager  and  dis- 
connected to  be  intelligently  discussed  or  understood.  Since 
that  time  I  have  embraced  every  opportunity  offered  for 
studying  these  phenomena ;  but  as  my  observations  have 
been  necessarily  restricted  to  a  very  small  portion  of  the 
drift-covered  area  stretching  across  the  continent  at  this 
latitude  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Mississippi  valley,  the 
conclusions  based  upon  them  may  not  always  be  in  accord 
with  those  drawn  from  a  larger  field  of  experience.  Still, 
I  trust  that  some  of  the  local  details  about  to  be  presented 
may  be  found  to  be  of  sufficient  novelty  and  interest,  even 
to  those  who  possess  a  wider  knowledge,  and  who  have  had 
enlarged  opportunities  for  investigations  in  this  branch  of 

*  We  use  the  term  "Drift,"  in  a  very  general  way  in  these  chapters — and 
perhaps  rather  improperly  sometimes— to  designate  any  and  all  of  the  uncon- 
solidated  deposits  lying  above  bed  rock. 


ON  THE  GLACIAL  DRIFT.  III.  331 

our  science,  to  secure  for  them  a  thoughtful  consideration, 
and  for  my  effort  in  their  presentation,  however  faulty  it 
may  be,  a  charitable  criticism. 

§  580.  A  synopsis  of  some  of  the  principal  inferences 
which  appear  to  be  reasonably  deducible  from  a  study  of 
the  topography,  drainage,  and  drift  deposits  of  northwest- 
ern Pennsylvania,  may  be  given  in  a  few  brief  paragraphs 
in  advance  of  the  detailed  facts. 

1st.  That  a  system  of  drainage  was  here  inaugurated  by 
the  post-carboniferous  uplift,  the  main  features  of  which 
are  still  preserved  ;  although  many  important  changes  have 
since  occurred,  by  which  some  of  the  old  outlets  have  been 
closed  and  new  deliveries  established,  so  that  certain  streams 
which  formerly  ran  north  now  fall  in  an  opposite  direction, 
and  the  drainage  of  large  areas  has  thus  been  transferred 
from  the  great  valley  of  the  lakes  to  the  Griilf  of  Mexico. 

2d.  That  there  was  a  triplicate  water-shed  then,  as  now  ; 
one  portion  contributing  to  the  Lake  Erie  basin,  another  to 
the  Mississippi  valley,  and  the  third  to  the  Susquehanna 
valley. 

3d.  That  the  pre-glacial  conditions  of  sub-aerial  erosion 
must  have  been  in  operation  for  long  ages,  seeing  that  some 
of  the  ancient  streams  are  found  to  have  cut  out  channels 
for  themselves  at  least  1200'  in  depth  and  of  regular  gradi- 
ent, notwithstanding  the  varying  structure  of  the  rocks 
over  which  they  flowed. 

4th.  That  then  succeeded  a  glacial  epoch,  during  the  con- 
tinuance of  which  the  whole  northern  country  was  covered 
with  an  unbroken  canopy  of  ice,  and  the  gorges  of  the  Lake 
Erie  slope  were  partially  filled  up  (indeed  some  of  them 
were  entirely  obliterated)  with  disrupted  fragments  of 
mountain-top  and  canon-wall,  intermixed  with  immense 
burdens  of  foreign  detritus,  brought  down  on  the  crystal 
currents  from  the  Azoic  highlands  of  the  north.  This  also 
was  an  age  of  very  great  duration  ;  and  to  be  studied  prop- 
erly, it  should  be  divided  into  1,  a  period  of  accumulation 
and  advance,  2,  a  period  of  maximum  development  and  in- 
tensest  cold,  and  3,  a  period  of  recession  and  decay. 

5th.  That  during  the  Ice  Age  the  basins  of  the  Great 


332  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Lakes  were  formed  by  the  widening  and  deepening  of  old 
river  valleys  through  the  agencies  of  ice  and  sub-glacial 
water ;  the  northeastern  outlet  was  obstructed,  holding 
back  the  sub-glacial  waters  and  throwing  the  overflow 
across  the  low  spots  in  the  ridge  at  the  south,  where  new 
avenues  of  drainage  were  brought  into  operation  at  differ- 
ent points  and  at  various  elevations,  and  maintained  for  un- 
equal periods  of  time — dependent  upon  the  accidents  of 
northeastern  obstruction  and  the  topography  of  the  country 
where  the  outlets  occurred.  That  during  the  age  of  reces- 
sion, while  some  of  the  ancient  channels  were  being  widened 
and  enlarged,  others  were  being  partially  or  completely 
filled  with  glacial  detritus  ;  while  some  of  the  southern  out- 
lets were  being  abandoned  by  reason  of  lowering  water-lev- 
els to  the  north,  others  were  still  kept  in  operation  ;  so  that, 
when  the  ice  finally  disappeared,  a  new  system  of  drainage 
had  been  established,  according  to  which  the  waters  of  the 
four  basins  shown  on  Plates  1  and  2  were  diverted  from 
their  former  outlets  into  the  valley  of  the  Lake  Erie  basin, 
(as  seen  on  Plate  No.  2,)  and  made  to  deliver  through  the 
Allegheny  and  Ohio  rivers  into  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi, 
(as  seen  on  Plate  No.  1.) 

6th.  That  since  the  Ice  Age,  atmospheric  agencies  of  ero- 
sion have  been  effectively  at  work  upon  indurated  rock  and 
glacial  debris  ;  deepening  outlets  and  bursting  barriers  have 
drained  nearly  all  of  the  lakelets  left  in  the  trails  of  reced- 
ing glaciers,  and  lowered,  by  successive  stages,  the  whole 
water-surface  of  the  basin  of  the  lakes.  Thus  the  mixed 
foreign  and  local  detritus  of  the  ice  age  has  been  rearranged 
and  modified  in  its  character,  according  to  the  measure  of 
these  accidental  conditions  to  which  it  was  subjected,  and 
the  rugged  pre-glacial  orographic  features  of  the  country 
have  been  sculptured  into  more  graceful  outlines,  while  the 
truncated  sub-structure  remains  to  point  out  the  probable 
topography  of  the  country  anterior  to  its  envelopment  by 
ice. 

7th.  That  no  phenomena  have  thus  far  presented  them- 
selves to  notice  in  this  district,  which  absolutely  require 
for  their  explanation  the  hypothesis  of  submergence  be- 


DRAINAGE  OF  THE  CHAUTAUQUA  BASIN.       III.  333 

neath  ocean  level  since  the  close  of  the  Carboniferous  period. 
Changes  of  levels  may  and  probably  have  occurred ;  but 
the  present  outlines  of  topography  and  drainage  do  not 
demand  such  a  supposition ;  and  the  deposition  of  the  al- 
luvions appear  to  be  as  susceptible  of  explanation  without 
them  as  with  them. 

§  581.  It  may  be  well  to  add  here,  also,  that  I  have  studied 
the  phenomena  of  ice-action,  as  they  are  exhibited  in  this 
district,  on  the  theory  that  the  natural  laws  which  govern 
the  movements  of  water  are  not  abrogated  by  its  congela- 
tion, but  merely  modified  and  retarded  in  their  action ;  that 
owing  to  the  properties  of  plasticity,  viscosity  and  regela- 
tion  possessed  by  ice,  there  may  be  different  currents  of  it, 
as  we  know  there  may  be  of  water,  moving  with  different 
velocities,  one  above  the  other,  and  gliding  either  in  paral- 
lel lines,  or  at  divergent  angles  ;  the  laws  of  velocity,  grav- 
ity, and  friction  operating  the  same  in  ice  as  in  water,  but 
not  with  equal  degrees  of  activity. 

Drainage  of  the  Chautauqua  Basin. 

§  582.  All  the  drainage  of  the  Chautauqua  Basin  now  cen- 
ters in  the  Allegheny  river  at  Irvineton,  in  Warren  county, 
Pa.,  as  described  in  Chapter  1,  and  delineated  on  Plate  No. 
1.  But,  that  this  channel  could  not  have  been  the  outlet  for 
the  pre-glacial  basin,  which  varied  but  little  from  this  in 
outline  (See  Plate  No.  2)  without  intermediate  unequal 
or  contorted  elevations  and  depressions  of  the  earth  crust, 
of  which  there  is  now  no  evidence,  seems  to  be  decidedly 
apparent  from  a  study  of  the  following  facts  : 

§  583.  The  valley  of  Tunangwant  creek,  a  stream  rising  in 
McKean  county,  Pa.,  and  trending  northerly  until  it  joins  the 
Allegheny  river  at  Carrollton,  in  Cattaraugus  county,  N. 
Y.,  has  been  very  thoroughly  pierced  by  oil  well  shafts 
within  the  last  three  years,  thus  affording  a  good  opportu- 
nity for  making  actual  measurements  of  the  thickness  of 
drift  lying  between  the  present  water-plain  and  the  bottom 
of  the  ancient  valley. 

§  584.  The  table  below  shows  the  maximum  thickness  at 
stated  points  between  De  Golier  and  Irwin'  s  Mills,  a  dis- 


334  III.   REPOET  OF  PROGBESS.   JOHN  F.  CAELL. 


tance  of  14  miles ;  and  the  borings  over  this  section  have 
been  so  numerous  that  the  results  obtained  cannot  be  ques- 
tioned. 

§  585.  Elevation  above  ocean  of  the  present  and  ancient 
valley-floors  of  the  Tunangwant  creek,  with  the  thickness 
of  drift  now  found  in  the  valley. 


Well 
mouth. 

Drive 
pipe. 

Old 
floor. 

DeGolier,   

1490 

155 

1335 

Bradford,    

1440 

218 

1222 

Tarport,  

1425 

240 

1185 

1415 

255 

1160 

Limestone,     

1405 

270 

1135 

Irwin's  Mills,    

1400 

280 

1120 

Supposing  the  water- plain  slope  to  very  nearly  represent 
the  slope  of  the  water  surface,  we  get  the  following  : 


Approximate  fall  in  present  stream. 


ELEVA- 
TION. 

Ii 

111 

5  g 

is 

1490 

De  Golier  to  Bradford, 

50 

3 

16'  8" 

1440 
1425 

Bradford  to  Tarport,       
Tarport  to  State  Line,        

15 
10 

10'  0  ' 
4'  0" 

1415 

State  Line  to  Limestone,      .              

10 

3 

3'  4'' 

1405 

Limestone  to  Irwin's  Mills,  (1400,)  

5 

4 

1'  3" 

1490 

De  Golier  to  Irwin's  Mills,  (1400,)    

90 

14 

6'  5" 

§  587.  Slope  of  Ancient  Valley-floor. 


ELEVA- 
TION. 

3d 

3l! 

§,_« 

1335 

De  Golier  to  Bradford, 

113 

3 

37'  8" 

1222 
1185 

Bradford  to  Tarport,           
Tarport  to  State  Line, 

37 
25 

u 

22 

24'  8" 
10'  0" 

1160 
1135 

State  Line  to  Limestone,      
Limestone  to  Irwin's  Mills,  (1120,)  

25 
15 

3 
4 

8'  4" 
3'  9" 

1335 

De  Golier  to  Irwin's  Mills,  (1120,)   

215 

14 

15'  4' 

DRAINAGE  OF  THE  CHAUTAUQUA  BASIN.       III.  335 

§  588.  It  will  be  observed  in  the  above  tables  that  the  super- 
ficial deposits  in  the  bottom  of  the  valley  thicken  as  they  are 
followed  down  stream  or  northward,  from  155  feet  to  280 
feet  in  a  distance  of  14  miles  ;  and  that  the  old  valley  floor 
has  more  than  twice  as  rapid  a  fall  as  the  bed  of  the  pres- 
ent stream. 

As  the  bordering  hills  rise  abruptly  from  the  modern 
water-plain  to  the  height  of  800  feet  or  more,  it  follows  that 
the  ancient  current  which  eroded  this  valley  must  have 
flowed  through  a  canon  not  less  than  1100  feet  deep,  (say- 
ing nothing  about  the  degradation  which  the  hilltops  may 
have  suffered,)  excavated  entirely  by  its  own  and  atmos- 
pheric agencies. 

§  589.  At  Irwin's  mills  our  chain  of  closely  connected 
vertical  measurements  ends  ;  but  we  have  already  caught  a 
glimpse  of  the  underground  structure  of  drift-filled  valleys 
in  studying  the  preceding  brief  tablet  of  geologic  history, 
as  thus  interpreted  by  the  drill,  which  will  b§  of  great  as- 
sistance in  our  further  investigations  of  the  subject. 

The  Tuna*  joins  the  Allegheny  river  at  Carrollton,  three 
miles  below  Irwirf  .<?  mills.  In  view  of  the  above  exhibit,  it 
seems  safe  to  say  that  here  will  be  found  at  least  300  feet  of 
drift,  which  puts  the  old  valley  floor  at  1100  feet  above 
tide.f  Now,  from  this  starting  point,  (since  all  of  the  up- 
per branches  of  the  Allegheny  must  deliver  their  waters 
here  in  any  event,)  let  us  trace  the  ancient  stream  and  see 
if  an  outlet  can  be  found. 

If  the  water  flowed  down  the  present  valley  of  the  Alle- 
gheny, then,  provided  no  changes  in  levels  have  occurred, 
that  valley  must  contain  about  300  feet  of  drift-tilling  all 
the  way  to  Pittsburgh,  and  below  ;  for  the  old  stream  could 
hardly  have  had  less  fall  than  the  present  one.  And  it 
should  be  expected,  also,  that  the  general  topographic 
features  of  the  valley  throughout  the  whole  distance  would 
afford  unmistakable  evidences  of  the  former  existence  of 
this  deep  cut  and  important  artery  of  drainage. 

*This  is  the  popular  abreviation  for  the  aboriginal  Tunangwant. 
f  Round  numbers  are  sufficient  for  the  purposes  of  a  general  discussion  of 
this  kind. 


336  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

§  590.  Following  the  lead  of  the  current  from  Carrollton 
and  examining  the  characteristics  of  the  valley  as  we  pro- 
ceed, a  broad  river  flat,  sometimes  a  mile  or  more  in  width, 
and  with  every  appearance  of  being  deeply  underlaid  with 
drift,  is  found  to  extend  all  the  way  to  Great  Bend,  43  miles 
from  Carrollton  (and  nine  miles  above  Warren),  in  Warren 
county,  Pa. 

At  Great  Bend  the  side- walls  are  high  and  rugged,  stand- 
ing only  about  1200  feet  apart,  and  the  stream  is  contracted 
to  a  width  of  350  feet.  Here,  in  an  attempt  to  put  down 
an  oil  well,  the  floor  of  the  old  valley  is  said  to  have  been 
reached  at  an  elevation  of  1170  feet  above  tide ;  but  with 
only  the  record  of  one  well  at  our  command  we  cannot  be 
sure  that  this  represents  the  deepest  part  of  the  old  exca- 
vation. The  surroundings,  however,  do  not  indicate  any 
great  depth  of  drift-filling  at  this  bend. 

From  Great  Bend  toward  Warren,  for  five  miles,  the  flats 
continue  narrow,  with  high,  steep  side-walls,  lined  on  their 
slopes  and  at  river  level  with  huge  blocks  of  conglomerate 
and  sandstone,  derived  in  many  places  from  cliffs  still  scarped 
near  their  summits  in  massive  layers  from  20  to  40  feet  thick. 
Then  the  valley  widens  again,  assuming  the  same  aspect  as 
that  presented  above  Great  Bend ;  and  thus  it  continues 
down  to  Warren  and  Irvineton,  and  further  on  for  several 
miles  towards  Tidioute. 

In  the  vicinity  of  Thompson's  station,  steep  side-walls 
again  encroach  upon  the  river,  and  from  this  point  south- 
ward the  bottoms  occupy  a  comparatively  narrow  defile, 
exhibiting  a  marked  contrast  to  the  broad  valleys  at  the 
north. 

From  Tidioute,  in  Warren  county,  to  Parker' s,  in  Arm- 
strong county,  the  river  terraces  and  islands  have  been 
thoroughly  drilled  upon,  disclosing  not  more  than  from  30 
to  50  feet  of  Drift  below  water  -  level,  at  any  point ;  by 
which  it  is  shown  that  the  old  river  bed  runs  nearly  paral- 
lel with  the  new  one,  through  all  this  portion  of  the  valley, 
and  that  the  new  flood  plain  lies  approximately  about  40 
feet  above  the  old  one.  The  following  table  will  further 
illustrate  this : 


DRAINAGE  OF  THE  CHAUTAUQUA  BASIN.       III.  337 


§  591.  Altitude  above  Ocean  Level,  of  the  Ancient  Floor  of 
the  Allegheny  River. 


R.  R. 

levels. 

Depth  of 
Drift, 

Ancient 
floor. 

Carrollton,  Cattara 
Cold  Spring, 
Great  Bend,  Warn 
Warren, 
Irvineton, 
Tidioute, 
West  Hickory,  Ve 
Tionesta,  Forest  C 
President,  Venang 
Henry's  Bend, 
Oleopolis, 
Walnut  Bend, 
Rockwood, 
Oil  City, 
Franklin, 
Cochran, 
Fosters, 
Scrubgrass, 
Emlenton, 
Parkers,  Armstron 

ugus  Cc 
en  Co., 

ango  C 
.,  Pa., 
o  Co.,  P 

g  Co.,  F 

.,  N.  Y., 

(est.),  .   . 
Pa., 

1400 
1330 
1230 
1200 
1168 
1113 
1092 
1060 
1048 
1035 
1032 
1023 
1016 
1003 
988 
982 
970 
945 
905 
889 

•300± 
315± 
60 
100 
60 
50 
45 
50 
40 
45 
45 
40 
50 
50 
40 
40 
40 
40 
45 
50 

1100± 
1015± 
1170 
1100 
1108 
1063 
1047 
1010 
1008 
990 
987 
983 
966 
958 
948 
942 
930 
905 
860 
839 

»( 

o.,  Pa., 

a.,     

a.,    .       .   . 

The  depth  of  drift,  as  shown  in  the  second  column,  has 
been  obtained  from  a  careful  examination  of  well  records, 
and  the  borings  have  been  so  numerous  that  the  figures 
cannot  be  other  than  reliable. 

The  railroad  elevations  in  the  first  column  are  generally 
from  20  to  30  feet  above  low  water  in  the  river. 

§  592.  Let  us  now  compare  the  present  river  fall  with  the 
ancient  channel  floor,  as  far  as  it  has  been  revealed  by  the 
drill. 

Present  fall  of  the  Allegheny  River. 


'K1 

Miles. 

Average 
fall  per 
mile. 

1376 

Carrollton  to  Warren,  

200' 

52 

3'.11" 

1176 

Warren  to  Tidioute,  

78' 

21 

3'.  8" 

1098 

Tidioute  to  Oil  Citv,  .  ... 

113' 

35| 

3'.  2" 

985 
860 
1376 
985 
1376 
1376 

Oil  City  to  Parkers,  
Parkers  to  Pittsburgh  (699),  
Carrollton  to  Oil  Citv,  ...  ... 
Oil  City  to  Pittsburgh  (699),  .  .  .  .'  . 
Carrollton  to  Parkers  (860)  
Carrolltou  to  Pittsburgh,  (699),  .  .  .  . 

125' 
161' 
391' 
286' 
516' 
677' 

49i 
82i 
108| 
132 
158 
240| 

2'.  6" 
2'.  0" 
3".  7" 
2'.  2" 
3'.  3" 
2'.  10'' 

22  III. 


338  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 


The  height  above  ocean  level,  of  the  Allegheny  river  at  low 
water  at  the  places  named,  is  given  in  the  first  column. 

§  593.  Fall  of  the  Ancient  Valley-floor. 


Total 
fall. 

Miles. 

Average 
fall. 

1100 

Carrollton  to  Warren,  

00 

52 

00 

1100 

Warren  to  Tidioute,      

37' 

21 

1'.  9' 

1063 

Tidioute  to  Oil  City,         .    .    . 

105' 

35i 

2M1" 

958 
1100 

Oil  City  to  Parkers  (839),   .    . 
Carrollton  to  Tidioute  (1063), 

119' 
37' 

49 

73 

2'.  5' 
0'.  6" 

1100 

Carrollton  to  Oil  City  (958),  . 

142' 

108^ 

r.  4" 

1100 

Carrollton  to  Parkers  (839),      . 

261' 

158 

1'.  8" 

§  594.  Supposing  that  the  deepest  part  of  the  ancient  chan- 
nel may  not  yet  have  been  discovered  at  Great  Bend  and 
Warren,  it  is  nevertheless  evident  from  the  above  showing, 
that  with  the  present  status  of  levels,  the  waters  of  the  up- 
per Allegheny  at  Carrollton  could  not  have  been  drained 
through  the  channel  at  Tidioute,  for  it  is  unreasonable  to 
suppose  that  a  mountain  stream  of  this  character  would  cut 
out  for  itself  a  bed  for  a  distance  of  73  miles  having  an 
average  fall  of  only  about  six  inches  to  the  mile. 

§  595.  A  difficulty  of  the  same  character,  and  equally  in- 
surmountable, is  encountered  in  attempting  to  find  a  drain- 
age towards  the  south  for  the  waters  of  ancient  Conewango 
creek. 

At  Warren,  where  the  Conewango  joins  the  Allegheny, 
the  old  floor  lies  at  1100  feet  above  tide.  Two  miles  north 
of  Warren,  (North  Warren,)  its  level  is  1111  feet  above  tide  ; 
and  probably  the  deepest  part  of  the  old  valley  has  not 
been  drilled  upon.  Seven  and  a  half  miles  north  of  War- 
ren (Sloan  farm)  i4  is  1024  feet.  Thirteen  miles  north  (Fen- 
tonville,  on  the  northern  line  of  the  State)  it  is  964  feet. 
These  figures  show  a  slope  in  the  old  valley  towards  the 
'north,  of  136  feet  in  about  13  miles  and  a  corresponding  in- 
crease in  the  thickness  of  the  superficial  deposits,  from  100 
feet  at  Warren,  to  276  feet  at  Fentonville. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

The  northern  outlets. 

§  596.  A  consideration  of  the  facts  noted  in  the  foregoing 
chapter  and  others  of  like  nature  observed  in  the  Oil  creeJc 
and  Conneaut  basins,  plainly  indicating  that  the  super- 
ficial deposits  occupying  the  valleys  north  and  northwest  of 
the  principal  line  of  outcrop  of  the  carboniferous  conglom- 
erate were  very  much  thicker  than  those  south  of  that  line, 
and  that  they  increased  in  thickness  as  they  were  followed 
northward  (showing  a  northerly  slope  to  the  floors  upon 
which  they  rested)  induced  me  in  1877  to  begin  the  search 
for  soM8  northern  outlet  for  the  old  Allegheny  waters. 

At  iirst  I  suspected  that  the  ancient  drainage  of  the  Chau- 
tauqua  basin  centered  at  West  Salamanca,  and  passed 
thence  northward  through  Little  Valley  into  Cattaraugus 
creek.  But  an  examination  of  the  surroundings  soon 
proved  that  this  could  not  have  been  the  case  ;  for  the  bed 
of  Little  Valley  rises  rapidly  going  north  and  soon  shows 
evidences  of  indurated  rocks  in  place  and  lying  in  such 
positions  as  must  necessarily  have  prevented  any  drainage 
in  that  direction,  even  if  we  admit  that  great  changes  of 
levels  have  occurred  in  comparatively  recent  times. 

I  then  proceeded  down  the  river  to  Steamburg,  near  the 
headwaters  of  the  southerly  branch  of  Conewango  creek. 
Here  lies  an  irregular  and  rudely  triangular  flat,  containing 
a  superficies  of  more  than  four  square  miles  and  walled  in 
by  hills  seven  or  eight  hundred  feet  in  height.  The  Alle- 
gheny enters  this  alluvial  tract  through  a  wide  gap  in  the 
hills  at  its  eastern  angle,  making  at  once  a  sharp  bend  to- 
ward the  south  ;  and  then  hugging  its  southeasterly  high- 
lands, passes  out  through  a  broad  flat  at  its  southern  angle. 
This  broad  valley  continues  down  to  the  mouth  of  Kinzua 
creek,  near  Great  Bend.  The  remaining  opening  at  the 
northwestern  angle  of  the  triangle  is  now  occupied  by 

(  339  III.  ) 


340  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Cold  Spring,  an  insignificant  stream  when  compared  with 
the  broad  valley  through  which  it  flows.  These  lowlands, 
curving  around  toward  the  west,  connect  directly  with  the 
great  valley  of  Conewango  creek,  so  that  the  Drift  deposits 
of  the  latter  and  of  the  Allegheny  valley  are  continuous 
through  this  now  obliterated  channel,  while  a  low  divide, 
not  50  feet  higher  than  the  general  surface,  determines  the 
direction  of  drainage  toward  the  Conewango  in  one  direction 
and  toward  the  Allegheny  in  the  other. 

The  Atlantic  and  Great  Western  railway  passes  in  a 
westerly  direction  along  the  northern  side  of  the  triangle, 
and  goes  out  at  the  west,  (with  a  moderate  rise  of  grade 
and  just  cutting  down  to  bed-rock,)  through  a  narrow  new 
gap,  opened  no  doubt  during  the  glacial  epoch. 

This  interesting  cut,  which  may  be  noticed  by  anyone 
in  passing  along  on  the  cars,  leaves  to  the  north  an  isolated, 
elliptical,  truncated  hill,  470  ft.  in  height  and  several  hun- 
dred acres  in  extent,  around  which  sweeps  the  broad  valley, 
(now  partly  occupied  by  Cold  spring  at  the  east,  and  by 
the  sources  of  Conewango  creek  on  the  north  and  west,) 
showing  plainly  that  this  was  once  a  bluff  point  connected 
with  the  highland  at  the  south  of  the  railway  at  a  time 
when  the  ancient  stream  wThich  lined  out  these  broad  val- 
leys had  a  northward  sweep. 

The  sketch  on  Plate  XL  will  more  clearly  explain  the 
situation. 

§  597.  Cold  Spring  is  about  17  miles  from  Carrollton  ; 
and  allowing  a  fall  of  5'  per  mile  to  the  ancient  stream,  its 
bed  would  here  be  85'  lower  than  at  Carrollton,  or  1015' 
above  tide,  (1100—85=1015.)  The  altitude  of  the  present 
water-plain  is  about  1330',  which  gives  315'  as  the  depth  of 
drift  to  be  looked  for  here,  on  that  supposition  of  ancient 
slopes.  The  character  of  this  valley  and  its  surroundings 
indicate  that  this  is  not  an  unreasonable  thickness  of  sup- 
erficial deposits  to  expect  in  this  locality. 

§  598.  At  Falconers,  Chautauqua  county,  the  north-south 
valley  from  Cassadaga  lake  to  the  Allegheny  is  crossed  by 
the  east-west  valley  occupied  by  a  portion  of  Conewango 
creek  and  the  outlet  of  Chautauqua  Lake.  Here  the  waters 


Chap.  XXXI,  PL  XL. 


III.  341 


342  III.    REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

of  Conewango  creek  from  the  east,  of  Cassadaga  lake  and 
creek  from  the  north,  and  of  Chautauqua  Lake  and  its 
feeders  from  the  west  all  converge,  and,  after  uniting  in 
one  stream,  turn  southward  and  flow  as  the  main  trunk  of 
the  Conewango  into  the  Allegheny  river  at  Warren. 

Falconers  is  about  20  miles  west  of  Cold  Spring.  Now, 
on  the  supposition  that  the  old  valley-floor  descends  to  this 
point  with  a  slope  of  5  ft.  per  mile,  it  would  here  be  found 
100'  below  its  level  at  Cold  Spring ;  that  is,  at  915'  above 
tide.  The  altitude  of  the  present  surface  is  1260'.  Conse- 
quently, on  this  supposition  there  'should  be  345  feet  of 
superficial  deposits  here. 

We  have  no  means  of  knowing  what  the  actual  thickness 
may  be  ;  for  no  oil  wells  have  been  attempted  in  the  imme- 
diate vicinity  ;  but  at  Levant,  about  a  mile  to  the  northeast 
and  on  the  northerly  side  of  the  old  valley,  a  number  of 
flowing  water  wells  have  been  obtained  by  simply  driving 
small  wrought-iron  pipes  into  the  drift  gravels.  These 
.wells  are  about  100  feet  deep,  and  none  of  them  have 
touched  bed-rock. 

As  far  as  can  be  judged  from  the  surface,  everything  in- 
dicates an  unusual  thickness  of  drift  deposits  at  Falconers. 
The  river  bottoms  are  wide  and  the  streams  wander  through 
them  in  an  intricate  net  work  of  loops  and  bows,  as  if  be- 
wildered in  attempting  to  select  channels  where  so  many 
opportunities  offer  themselves.  The  side  hills  are  low,  and 
rise  from  the  plain  with  moderate  slopes  and  curving  out- 
lines, as  would  naturally  be  the  case  supposing  the  more 
rugged  sculpturing  of  their  bases  to  be  concealed. 

§  599.  At  Fentonyille,  nine  miles  south  of  Falconers,  the 
State  line  crosses  the  Conewango  valley  ;  and  here  (in  1877) 
the  Weeks'  well  was  drilled.  It  commenced  on  the  water- 
plain,  at  an  elevation  of  1240',  and  reached  fixed  rock  only 
after  driving  276  feet  of  pipe,  through  blue  clay  and  gravel. 
This  puts  the  old  valley  floor,  by  actual  measurement,  at 
964'.  From  this  point  an  assumed  slope  in  the  old  floor  of 
5'  per  mile  would  bring  it  down  to  919'  at  Falconers. 

There  is  thus  only  four  feet  difference  between  the  re- 
sults of  the  two  calculations,  viz  :  From  Cold  Spring  to 


THE  NORTHERN  OUTLETS.  III.  343 

Falconers,  and  from  Fentonville  to  Falconers;  the  one 
making  the  old  valley  bed  915',  the  other  919'  above  tide. 

§  600.  We  have  shown  in  §  595  that  the  waters  which 
excavated  the  valley  at  Fentonville  could  not  have  drained 
into  the  old  Allegheny  at  Warren  ;  they  must  needs,  there- 
fore have  passed  northward ;  and  in  doing  so  they  could 
not  possibly  have  turned  out  of  the  Conewango  valley  be- 
fore reaching  Falconers  ;  neither  could  they  have  flowed  to 
that  point  unless  the  old  floor  lies  at  about  the  elevation 
here  claimed  for  it. 

It  seems  probable  then,  that  the  ancient  drainage  from  the 
east  and  south  centered  near  Falconers  ;  and  if  so,  then 
there  were  but  two  possible  outlets  for  it ;  one  northward 
through  the  Cassadaga  valley  ;  the  other  westward  through 
the  valley  at  the  foot  of  Chautauqua  Lake. 

§  601.  The  elevation  of  Cliautauqua  Lake  is  1299  feet, 
and  its  maximum  depth  is  said  to  be  about  100  feet.  Its 
present  outlet  has  cut  for  itself  a  narrow  channel  about  50 
feet  deep  through  solid  rock,  at  a  point  between  James- 
town and  Dexterville  ;  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  this 
is  a  post-glacial  excavation,  and  that  an  ancient  channel, 
deeper  than  the  present  lake-bed  exists  to  the  north  of  it. 

Jamestown  is  built  on  a  cluster  of  drift-hills  which  have 
been  dumped  into  the  old  valley  at  this  point  in  conse- 
quence of  its  peculiar  position  in  relation  to  the  different 
currents  of  ice-flow.  The  obliterated  channel  seems  to  have 
crossed  the  narrow  neck  of  drift  near  the  cemetery  at  the 
northly  edge  of  town,  and  swept  around  into  the  Cone- 
wango valley  through  the  broad  dry  basin  north  of  Dexter- 
ville. 

There  is  no  evidence,  however,  of  a  northern  ancient  out- 
let through  the  valley  of  Chautauqua  Lake  into  the  Lake 
Erie  basin  ;  for  all  the  surrounding  hills  are  high,  and  strati- 
fied rocks  appear  in  such  positions  as  to  preclude  the  pos- 
sibility of  any  old  valley  being  concealed  from  view.  The 
slope  from  the  divide  toward  Lake  Erie  is  abrupt ;  and  if 
an  old  channel  had  ever  been  cut  there  it  must  have  left 
some  witnesses  of  its  existence  in  the  present  topography. 

If  the  old  current  passed  westward  across  the  foot  of 


344  III.         REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Chautauqua  lake,  it  must  have  entered  the  Little  Broken- 
straw  valley  at  Grant,  and  followed  it  down  to  the  Alle- 
gheny river. 

This  is  rendered  improbable,  by  the  fact  that  Grant  is  138 
feet  higher  than  the  surface  of  Chautauqua  Lake  ;  and  it 
would  require  a  cut  of  about  500  feet  to  convey  the  water 
from  Falconers  in  this  direction.  Even  then  it  could  not 
flow  down  the  Allegheny  river,  because,  as  we  have  seen, 
the  old  floor  lies  at  Tidioute  at  1063',  which  is  148  feet 
above  our  starting  point  at  Falconers. 

From  Grant  the  current  could  not  have  gone  westward 
into  French  creek,  near  Corry,  because  a  high  ridge  inter- 
venes, through  which  the  A.  and  G.  W.  Ry  finds  a  pas- 
sage only  by  following  the  windings  of  a  narrow  valley 
after  passing  over  a  summit  very  close  to  bed  rock  at  an 
elevation  of  1550'.* 

§  602.  We  see  from  the  above  facts  that  the  drainage 
from  the  west  also  centered  at  Falconers  ;  and  now  our  only 
alternative  is  to  seek  for  an  outlet  to  the  north  through  the 
valley  of  Cassadaga  Lake. 

Starting  then  with  our  calculated  elevation  of  bed-rock 
at  Falconers,  and  continuing  the  5  feet  slope  for  18  miles, 
to  Cassadaga  Lake,  bed  rock  should  be  found  under  the 
lake  at  (915'— 90'=)825/  As  the  lake  elevation  is  at  1305', 
and  as  the  drift-hills  north  of  it  are  about  20  feet  higher, 
the  old  valley  should  therefore  contain  about  500  feet  of 
drift-filling. 

Five  hundred  feet  of  drift  seems  like  an  immense  thick- 
ness of  superficial  deposits.  At  first  thought  we  are 
startled  at  its  magnitude,  being  hardly  willing  to  accept  a 
train  of  reasoning  which  leads  to  such  conclusions.  But 
on  a  further  study  of  the  premises,  guided  by  analogy  and 
the  light  thrown  upon  the  subject  by  actual  experience  in 
other  places,  imaginary  difficulties  vanish,  possibilities  pre- 
sent themselves  which  can  only  be  entertained  unchallenged, 
and  probabilities  approximate  so  closely  to  certainties  that 
a  growing  conviction  is  the  result. 

*  On  Plates  1  and  2  the  summit  elevation  a  little  southeast  of  Corry  should 
read  1800'  instead  of  1500'. 


THE  NORTHEEIST  OUTLETS.  III.  345 

Five  hundred  feet  of  filling  beneath  Cassadaga  lake  does 
not  presuppose  an  extraordinary  depth  of  old  valley  in  this 
instance,  for  the  side  hills  rise  only  about  150  feet  above 
the  lake  surface  ;  so  that  if  the  valley  were  again  freed  from 
drift,  it  would  be  not  more  than  650  feet  deep  ;  while,  as  we 
have  seen  above,  the  Tunangwant  would  be  more  than  1100 
feet  deep  under  the  same  circumstances.  There  is  no  im- 
probability then  on  this  score.  But  this  of  course  is  mak- 
ing no  account  of  the  extent  of  erosion  the  hilltops  have 
suffered  since  the  old  valleys  were  excavated ;  whether 
more  or  less  in  one  or  other  of  the  situations  we  cannot  tell. 

Moreover,  the  calculation  is  based  upon  a  projection  of 
the  ancient  river-fall  along  a  hypothetical  slope  of  5  ft.  per 
mile,  when  it  may  have  been  perhaps  not  more  than  2  feet. 

The  distance  from  Fentonville,  where  we  have  a  measured 
elevation  of  the  old  valley-floor  to  Cassadaga  lake  is  28 
miles.  A  slope  of  2  feet,  instead  of  one  of  5  feet  to  the 
mile  as  calculated  above,  would  place  the  old  floor  beneath 
the  lake  84  feet  higher,  and  reduce  the  drift-filling  to  about 
400  feet. 

§  603.  Cassadaga  Lake,  a  very  irregularly  outlined  body 
of  water,  five  lakelets  connected  by  narrow  channels,  nestles 
among  a  cluster  of  drift -hills  on  the  lowest  part  of  the 
divide  separating  the  Chautauqua  basin  from  the  Lake  Erie 
slope.  At  the  north  end  of  the  lake  the  tops  of  the  sand 
hills  are  only  from  ten  to  thirty  feet  above  its  surface. 
These  hills  stretch  across  a  sag  in  the  crest  of  the  divide, 
perhaps  a  mile  or  more  in  width,  and  overlap  upon  the 
stratified  rocks  of  the  ridges  lying  to  the  east  and  to  the 
west  of  it. 

Looking  southward  from  the  lake,  the  valley  of  Cassa- 
daga outlet,  which  is  so  wide  and  level,  and  merged  by  such 
insensible  gradations  into  the  sloping  side-hills,  as  to  de- 
serve rather  the  appellation  of  a  plain — stretches  away,  and 
loses  itself  in  the  distant  landscape  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
leave  the  beholder  in  doubt  whether  he  is  looking  down 
stream  or  up. 

In  the  opposite  direction,  towards  the  north,  the  land- 
scape changes  in  a  remarkable  manner  ;  first  a  steep  decliv- 


346  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOIIX  F.   CARLL. 

ity  almost  at  one's  feet ;  then  an  apparently  level  plain,  and 
the  broad  expanse  of  Lake  Erie.  Ragged  drift-hills  and 
basins  rapidly  falling  in  successive  steps,  are  seen  occupy- 
ing the  whole  width  of  what  seems  to  have  been  an  ancient 
valley.  Through  these  yielding  clays  and  gravels  the  rain- 
fall of  ages  has  cut  deep  and  intricate  gorges,  plunging  at 
the  rate  of  more  than  150  feet  per  mile  towards  Canadaway 
creek,  the  stream  which  now  usurps  the  lower  portion  of 
the  old  valley. 

§  604.  At  Laona,  five  miles  north  of  Cassadaga  lake,  we 
have  descended  500  feet  below  its  surface;  and  here  the 
Canadaway  is  flowing  in  a  rocky  channel;  although  this 
may  not  be  the  channel  of  the  ancient  stream. 

The  probabilities  are  that  the  old  valley  passes  down 
through  Dunkirk  harbor ;  whereas  the  Canadaway  now  de- 
bouches at  some  distance  to  the  west  of  it.  Light-house 
point,  on  the  west  of  Dunkirk  harbor,  seems  like  a  remnant 
of  the  western  old  channel  walls ;  striated  rocks  also  ap- 
pear in  places  on  the  east ;  all  between  is  a  mass  of  wave- 
worn  Drift. 

If  it  be  conceded  that  the  fixed  rock  exposed  at  Laona 
(from  this  point  up  to  Cassadaga,  nothing  but  Drift  can  be 
discovered  in  the  center  of  the  valley)  be  the  deepest  part 
of  the  old  excavation,  we  still  have  sufficient  fall  to  deliver 
the  water  from  Falconer's  basin,  where  we  have  already 
seen  reason  to  believe  that  the  upper  drainage  all  converged, 
thus : 

Probable  elevation  of  old  floor  at  Falconer's, 915' 

Bed  rock  seen  at  Laona, 800' 

Total  fall, .  115' 

Distance,         23  miles. 

Fall  per  mile,      5  feet. 

This  is  more  than  twice  the  rate  at  which  the  Allegheny 
river  now  falls  from  Oil  City  to  Pittsburgh. 


Three  classes  of  valleys. 

§  605.  We  pass  to  a  consideration  of  another  class  of  facts 
bearing  upon  the  subject. 


THREE  CLASSES  OF  VALLEYS.  III.  347 

At  the  commencement  of  my  researches  it  appeared  to 
me  a  reasonable  supposition  that  the  present  topographic 
features  of  the  country  would  assist  in  tracing  out  these 
ancient  streams.  The  facts  noted  and  the  comparisons 
made  with  this  idea  soon  became  fruitful  in  pointing  out  a 
distinction  between  three  kinds  of  valleys,  classified  as 
follows : 

1st.  Broad  valleys,  deeply  tilled  with  Drift  and  occupied 
by  streams  still  flowing  in  their  original  directions. 

2d.  Broad  valleys,  deeply  filled  with  Drift,  where  the 
present  streams  apparently  run  in  a  direction  opposite  to 
that  taken  by  the  streams  which  excavated  them. 

3d.  Narrow  valleys,  with  abrupt  and  steep  side- walls, 
and  slightly  drift-filled ;  these  being  the  new  outlets,  cut 
in  glacial  times,  at  points  where  the  former  lines  of  drain- 
age were  reversed  from  north  to  south. 

§  606.  The  contrast  between  a  valley  of  normal  current, 
where  the  stream  has  always  flowed  in  the  same  direction, 
and  a  valley  of  reversed  current  is  plainly  discernible,  and 
in  several  ways. 

In  regard  to  the  former  it  will  be  noticed  that  lateral 
streams  generally  fall  into  the  main  valley  so  as  to  point  in 
the  direction  of  its  water-flow  ;  and  in  case  the  after  cur- 
rent of  ice-flow  moved  also  in  the  same  direction,  then  the 
upper  bluff-point  between  the  two  valleys,  where  the 
streams  meet  at  an  acute  angle,  is  drawn  out  into  a  long, 
tapering,  prismatic  wedge  ;  while  the  lower  point  is  rounded 
off  obtusely. 

In  regard  to  the  latter,  where  the  stream  has  been  re- 
versed, the  tributaries  often  come  in  from  an  opposite  di- 
rection to  the  present  course  of  the  main  channel ;  the 
acute  angle  of  the  original  upper  bluff-point  is  rounded  off  ; 
and  the  lateral  current  (now  flowing  over  the  deep  alluvi- 
ons of  the  modern  valley,  far  above  its  ancient  floor,  and 
with  a  possible  water-plain  widened  by  so  much  as  the 
depth  of  filling  and  slope  of  original  valley  walls  may  al- 
low,) wanders  hither  and  thither  through  the  broad  bot- 
toms, and  finally  enters  the  main  stream  perhaps  a  mile  or 
more  from  its  former  junction.  For  example,  the  tributa- 


348  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

ries  of  the  Allegheny  between  Steamburg  and  Great  Bend, 
and  of  the  Conewango  between  Warren  and  Falconers  ex- 
hibit this  peculiarity. 

Another  observation  may  be  noted.  Where  a  sharp  bend 
occurs  in  a  stream  of  rapid  fall  the  current  sweeps  con- 
stantly against  the  outer  arc  of  the  circle ;  the  banks  are 
undermined  and  falling,  leave  perpendicular  bluffs.  As  the 
stream  cuts  deeper  into  the  bed-rock  it  also  carries  the 
curve  forward,  down  stream,  always  hugging  the  cliff. 
Hence  the  eroded  channel  at  this  point  is  not  cut  down  ver- 
tically, as  it  might  be  on  a  tangent,  but  at  an  angle  to  the 
horizon  dependent  upon  the  force  of  water  and  upon  the 
quality  of  materials  wrought  upon.  The  effect  is  to  leave 
a  sloping  and  sometimes  terraced  point  of  highland  on  the 
inside  of  the  curve  ;  and  steep  bluffs,  covered  with  falling 
masses  of  hill-top  rocks,  on  the  outside.  It  is  evident,  in 
situations  of  this  kind,  that  erosion  originally  commenced 
at  the  top  of  the  sloping  inner  point  of  upland  ;  and  that 
it  has  cut  down  by  stages  ;  shifting  laterally  as  it  sank  ver- 
tically to  its  present  plane  of  activity.  Illustrative  exam- 
ples are  numerous  along  the  Allegheny  river  below  Franklin. 

Let  us  now  suppose  a  stream  checked  in  its  operations 
after  having  cut  out  a  chasm  through  horizontal  measures 
to  a  depth  of  five  hundred  or  a  thousand  feet.  Let  us  next 
suppose  this  chasm  filled  with  loose  materials  to  a  height 
of  one,  two  or  three  hundred  feet ;  so  that  a  wide  level  bot- 
tom be  left  between  the  sloping  sides  of  the  valley.  Finally 
let  the  drainage  be  reversed.  How  will  the  new  stream  act  ? 

Certainly  the  new  stream,  flowing,  not  like  the  old  stream 
at  the  narrow  bottom  of  a  rock  gorge,  but  over  a  wide  level 
bottom  of  loose  materials,  will  be  free  to  select  a  new  chan- 
nel ;  and  the  same  laws  which  directed  the  old  stream  flow- 
ing in  one  direction,  against  the  cliffs,  should  direct  the  new 
stream  flowing  in  the  opposite  direction,  away  from  them. 
New  cliffs  should  be  formed  in  other  places,  leaving  the  old 
ones  unwashed  by  the  stream  and  silent  witnesses  of  the 
change. 

Cliffs  of  this  character  may  be  seen  at  Stoneham  in  War- 
ren county  ;  on  the  Allegheny  between  Irvineton  and  War- 


THE  TIONESTA  DRAINAGE.  III.   349 

ren,  and  between  Great  Bend  and  Steamburg,  on  the  Cone- 
wango,  and  in  many  other  places. 

§  607.  Without  dwelling  on  these  facial  characteristics 
which  may  be  excellent  guides  in  the  field,  but  cannot  be 
made  intelligible  descriptively  without  the  aid  of  a  contour 
map  of  the  country,  we  will  note  one  more  piece  of  circum- 
stantial evidence  for  a  northern  outlet  to  the  Chautauqua 
Basin,  and  then  proceed  to  indicate  what  appears  to  have 
been  the  shape  of  the  water-  tree  of  the  upper  Allegheny  in 
pre-glacial  times. 

The  Tionesta  drainage. 

§  608.  In  Mead  township,  Warren  county,  at  an  elevation 
of  a  little  more  than  1400'  lies  Cranberry  Swamp,  under- 
laid and  surrounded  by  drift-deposits  similar  to  those  found 
about  the  several  lakes  and  swamps  which  are  scattered 
along  the  crest  of  the  Lake  Erie  divide,  and  they  are  the 
most  southerly  accumulations  of  the  kind  in  the  region. 

Tionesta  creek  heading  southwest  of  Cranberry  swamp, 
in  Limestone  township,  Warren  county,  (and  but  a  few 
miles  from  the  Allegheny  river  at  Tidioute,)  flows  northeast- 
ward to  it  and  through  it.  After  issuing  from  the  swamp, 
the  Tionesta  turns  sharply  to  the  south,  and  flows  to  Shef- 
field, where  it  is  re-inforced  by  Two  Mile  run  coming  from 
the  east.  Thence  it  flows  on  to  Barnesville,  where  it  meets 
the  south  branch  of  Tionesta  full  in  the  face. 

Here  the  swollen  stream  turns  squarely  to  the  west,  pass- 
ing out  of  a  broad  and  terraced  basin,  through  a  narrow 
gorge  between  high  hills,  and  enters  the  main  creek  which 
flows  in  a  devious  southwesterly  direction  into  the  Alle- 
gheny river,  at  Tionesta  Bend,  in  Forest  county. 

Just  north  of  Cranberry  Swamp,  (and  perhaps  receiving 
some  of  its  drainage,)  heads  Dutchman1  s  Run,  a  rapid  but 
inconsiderable  stream  occupying  a  broad  old  valley  which 
opens  northward  into  the  Allegheny  river  just  above 
Warren. 

A  glance  at  the  curious  windings  of  the  upper  Tionesta, 
as  shown  on  any  map,  would  be  sufficient  to  awaken  a  sus- 
picion in  the  mind  of  a  fluvialist  that  these  peculiarities 
were  due  to  unusual  causes  ;  and  a  few  hours  spent  in  the 


350  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Held  would  satisfy  him  that  his  suspicions  were  well  founded. 
There  seems  to  be  scarcely  the  shadow  of  a  doubt  that  all 
of  the  upper  branches  of  the  Tionesta  once  delivered  through 
Dutchman  s  Run  into  the  Allegheny. 

For  proof  of  this  proposition  we  need  only  point  to  1.  the 
clear  evidences  of  a  new  cut  at  Barnesville,  furnishing  an 
outlet  to  the  south  ;  2.  to  the  equally  clear  evidences  of  a 
deep  fill  of  drift  at  Clarendon,  (Cranberry  Swamp,)  consti- 
tuting a  divide  or  water  shed  to  the  north  ;  and  3.  to  the 
abandoned  curve-cliffs  at  Stoneham  once  washed  by  the 
north-flowing  stream,  bat  now  high  and  dry  on  the  drift- 
filled  divide. 

Moreover,  a  well  sunk  at  Sheffield  (in  1865)  and  requir- 
ing 110  feet  of  drive  pipe,  shows  that  the  old  floor  there  is 
lower  than  the  floor  of  its  present  Tionesta  outlet,  but  Jiigher 
than  its  former  Conewango  outlet. 

Old  floor  in  Sheffield  well,  above  tide, 1215' 

at  Warren, 1100' 

"         at  Foxburg,  Forest  county, 1260' 

Thickness  of  drift  in  valley  at  Sheffield, 110' 

«  «  "  Warren, 100' 

"  "  "  Foxburg,      25' 

Foxburg  is  situated  on  the  Tionesta,  nine  miles  belc^ 
Sheffield. 

§  609.  The  following  tables  will  assist  in  a  comparison  of 
the  average  fall  of  the  present  streams  with  the  slopes  of 
the  ancient  channel : 

Altitude  of  Old  Valley -floors. 

At  Carrollton,  above  tide, 1100' 

At  Cassadaga  Lake,  (calculated,) 815' 

At  Sheffield,    .   .   .  • 1215' 

At  Warren, 1100' 

At  Fentonville, 964' 

Fall  of  the  Ancient  Valley-floor. 


1100 

1215 

1100 


Carrollton  to  Cassadaga  Lake,  (815',) '  285  J  60  !  4'  9" 

Sheffield  to  Warren 115  11  I  10'  5" 

Warren  to  Fentonville,                  136  i  13  I  10'  6' 

Fentonville  to  Cassadaga  Lake,  (815',) 149  28  5'  4' 


DRAINAGE  MAPS.  III.  351 

Present  fall  of  Cassadaga  and  Conewango  Creeks. 


§ 

1 

3 

1 

1 

1305 
1225 

Cassadaga  Lake  to  Fentonville,  
Fentonville  to  Warren.  (1176')  •  

80 
49 

28 
13 

2'  10" 
3'     9" 

1305 

Cassadaga  to  Warren,  (1176',)  

129 

41 

3      2 

Drainage  Maps. 

§  610.  Two  maps  of  the  Summit  water-basins  of  north- 
western Pennsylvania  accompany  this  volume.  The  first, 
Plate  I,  is  designed  to  show  the  drainage  system  as  it  now 
exists.  The  second,  Plate  II,  is  intended  to  indicate  the 
probable  shape  of  the  pre-glacial  water-tree. 

A  comparison  of  the  two  sheets  will  disclose  the  points 
where  the  physical  changes  have  occurred  which  resulted 
in  transferring  the  overflows  of  the  several  basins  from  the 
valley  of  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi. 

§  611.  It  will  be  noticed  (Plate  II)  that  the  blue  rim  of 
the  Chautauqua  basin  is  broken  through  by  a  stream  only 
at  one  point — at  Cassadaga  lake,  in  Chautauqua  county. 
In  pre-glacial  times  all  the  water  from  this  basin,  contain- 
ing probably  4,000  square  miles  of  surface,  appears  to  have 
been  delivered  through  this  one  outlet ;  and  it  will  be  ob- 
served by  referring  to  the  hilltop  summits  along  the  rim, 
that  the  outlet  occurs  in  the  very  spot  where  we  should 
look  for  it,  on  the  supposition  that  it  was  opened  under  the 
influences  of  atmospheric  erosion  alone  ;  for  that  portion  of 
the  crest  between  Mayville  and  Dayton  is  much  lower  on 
the  average  than  any  other  part  of  it. 

The  only  outlet  through  the  rim  of  the  Chautauqua  basin 
noticeable  on  the  map  (Plate  I)  is  at  Thompson's  station, 
in  Warren  county,  Pa.,  where  the  Allegheny  river  now  car- 
ries the  accumulated  drainage  of  all  this  summit  area.  An- 
other outlet  through  the  ancient  rim  was  cut  near  Barnes- 
ville,  in  Warren  county,  but  only  the  waters  derived  from 
a  small  area  tributary  to  Tionesta  creek  now  pass  through 
that  gap. 


352  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

§  612.  The  principal  points  of  difference  between  the  two 
maps  are  these : 

On  map  .No.  2  pre-glacial  ridges  of  indurated  rocks  ex- 
tend across  the  stem  of  the  present  Allegheny  at  Thomp- 
son's and  at  Great  Bend,  and  also  across  the  present  Tion- 
esta  creek,  near  Barnesville,  all  in  Warren  county. 

On  map  No.  I,  barriers  of  glacial  debris  obstruct  the  an- 
cient Cassadaga  valley  at  Cassadaga  Lake,  and  at  Steam- 
burg,  in  N.  Y.,  and  a  similar  deposit  at  Stoneham,  in  War- 
ren county,  has  in  like  manner  obstructed  and  reversed  the 
ancient  stream  formerly  flowing  northward  into  the  Cone- 
wango. 

It  is  here  claimed  that  the  cutting  through  of  these  three 
pre-glacial  ridges  and  the  building  up  of  the  three  glacial 
barriers  accomplished  during  the  Ice-age  through  the  agen- 
cies of  water  and  ice,  as  hereinafter  to  be  explained,  would 
result  in  the  re-alignment  of  drainage  lines  as  shown  on  the 
two  maps  ;  the  status  of  levels  remaining  meantime  un- 
changed ;  and  that  therefore  we  have  no  need  of  resorting 
to  the  hypothesis  of  warpings  and  oscillations  of  the  earth- 
crust,  or  of  submergence  beneath  ocean  and  subsequent  ele- 
vation, to  account  for  the  accomplishment  of  any  of  the 
effects  observed  in  this  basin. 

Allegheny  river  drainage. 

§  613.  The  upper  Allegheny  waters  appear  to  have  flowed 
in  pre-glacial  times  as  they  now  flow,  as  far  south  at  least 
as  Steamburg  ;  where  meeting  the  waters  of  Kinzua  creek 
and  its  tributaries  from  the  south,  they  swept  around  to 
the  northwest  into  the  Conewango.  That  part  of  the  Alle- 
gheny valley,  between  Steamburg  and  Kinzua,  was  then  a 
portion  of  Kinzua  creek.  The  present  Kinzua  valley,  for 
some  distance  above  Kinzua  village,  is  a  counterpart  in  width 
and  general  appearance  of  the  portion  of  its  old  bed  now 
occupied  by  the  Allegheny.  Near  where  Kinzua  village 
now  stands,  a  small  stream  came  in  from  the  south,  taking 
its  rise  in  the  highlands  trending  across  the  country  in  the 
vicinity  of  Great  Bend.  This  ridge  capped  with  the  mas- 
sive conglomerates  and  sandstones  of  the  coal  measures 


ALLEGHENY  UIVEK  DKAIJSTAGE.  III.  853 

still  maintains  its  superior  elevation  above  the  surrounding 
country,  and  lias  preserved  several  patches  of  good  coal 
(Quaker  Hill,  &c.,)  notwithstanding  its  prominent  exposure 
to  erosive  agencies  during  and  since  the  Ice-age  by  reason 
of  its  peculiar  position  and  altitude.  It  was  also  the  source 
of  several  streams  flowing  in  a  westerly  direction,  one  of 
which,  a  branch  of  Hook' s  Run,  appears  to  have  taken  its 
rise  quite  near  the  Kinzua  branch  above  referred  to.  These 
two  branches  became  connected  during  the  Ice-age,  and 
their  channels  deepened  and  adjusted  to  grade,  now  form 
the  Great  Bend  cut  connecting  the  broad  valley  north  of 
Kinzua  with  the  broad  valley  west  of  Hook's  Run. 

The  following  facts  appear  to  sustain  this  conclusion  : 
(1)  The  narrowness  of  Great  Bend  cut  as  compared  with  the 
valleys  both  above  and  below  it.  If  the  ancient  current 
which  excavated  the  deep  and  broad  valleys  above  and  be- 
low passed  through  the  bend,  why  this  contraction  of  the 
valley  at  this  point  where  there  is  110  conspicuous  change 
in  structure  to  cause  it  ? 

(2)  Northeast  of  the  bend  the  lateral  streams  come  in  from 
a  southerly  direction  corresponding  with  a  northerly  flow 
of  the  Kinzua,  (now  a  part  of  the  Allegheny,)  and  the  con- 
tours of  the  hills  at  their  intersection  with  the  main  valley, 
point  in  the  same  direction. 

(3)  West  of  the  bend,  features  of  a  similar  character  indi- 
cate a  westerly  flow  for  the  drainage  in  harmony  with  the 
present  current. 

That  the  other  new  cuts  of  the  Tionesta  near  Barnesville, 
and  of  the  Allegheny  at  Thompsons,  have  originated  in  a 
similar  manner  to  the  above,  that  is  by  the  joining  together 
of  two  streams  originally  flowing  in  opposite  directions,  can 
hardly  be  doubted.  The  proofs  are  plain,  but  it  is  unneces- 
sary to  adduce  them  here,  .for  they  would  only  be  a  repeti- 
tion of  those  already  given  above. 

§  614.  The  Allegheny  in  pre-glacial  times,  according  to 
these  views  of  the  situation,  took  its  rise  on  the  southerly 
side  of  the  high  lands  between  Irvineton  and  Tidioute,  and 
no  water  north  of  that  point  entered  its  channel.  This  ridge, 
it  will  be  noticed,  forms  the  southerly  rim  of  Chautauqua 
23  III. 


354  III.   KEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

basin.  Down  its  northerly  slope  ran  a  small  stream  into 
the  Brokenstraw,  at  Irvineton.  The  Brokenstraw  flowing 
eastward  to  Warren,  there  met  Hook's  run  and  turned 
north  through  Conewango  creek.  At  Falconer' s  the  stream 
was  greatly  enlarged  by  the  waters  of  Chautauqua  from 
the  west  and  those  of  the  Kinzua,  northern  Allegheny,  and 
Cassadaga  from  the  east,  and  still  flowing  northward  through 
the  Cassadaga  valley  entered  the  Lake  Erie  basin. 

That  portion  of  the  Allegheny  valley  between  Steamburg 
and  Thompson's  has  had  a  very  different  history  from  the 
portions  above  and  below  those  points.  The  Allegheny,  as 
now  flowing,  may  be  said  to  be  a  modern  stream  occupying 
portions  of  the  valleys  of  several  old  ones.  From  Steam- 
burg  to  Great  Bend  it  has  usurped  the  trough  excavated 
by  the  ancient  Kinzua  and  its  branch,  and  reversed  the  di- 
rection of  their  former  currents — from  Great  Bend  to  War- 
ren it  has  absorbed  Hook's  run  and  its  branch,  but  still 
carries  them  in  their  original  course — from  Warren  to  Irvine- 
ton  it  has  robbed  the  Brokenstraw  of  its  bed  and  sweeps 
back  its  waters  through  a  former  tributary,  and  thus  effects 
a  connection  with  the  present  trunk  stream. 

The  water-tree  of  Chautauqua  basin,  as  shown  on  Plate 
No.  2,  is  somewhat  peculiar,  but  not  at  all  unnatural.  When 
this  area  emerged  from  the  ocean  we  may  suppose  it  to  have 
been  a  nearly  flat  but  somewhat  warped  and  undulating 
basin  shaped  plateau  of  mud  and  sand.  It  must  have  had 
a  lowest  point  among  its  depressions — this  seems  to  have 
been  near  Falconer's  ;  and  a  lowest  point  in  its  periphery  ; 
this  seems  to  have  been  at  Cassadaga.  The  rain  waters 
converging  toward  the  lowest  point  of  the  basin  would 
accumulate  and  overflow  at  the  lowest  point  of  the  rim. 
An  outlet  once  established  would  cut  down  rapidly  in  such 
soft  and  unconsolidated  materials  as  we  may  suppose  these 
to  have  been.  The  main  lake  would  soon  be  drained,  leav- 
ing smaller  lakelets  scattered  about  in  the  depressions,  all 
in  turn  to  be  emptied  into  the  common  outlet,  as  the  bar- 
riers cut  down  and  the  channels  deepened.  A  system  of 
drainage,  whose  outlines  were  first  inscribed  in  this  manner 
upon  a  soft  and  undulating  plain,  would  be  a  striking  pro- 


ALLEGHENY  EIVER  DRAINAGE.  III.  355 

totype  of  that  which  we  see  the  witnesses  of  in  this  ancient 
basin. 

It  is  an  interesting  thought  in  this  connection,  that  if  the 
new  cuts  on  the  Allegheny  at  Thompson's  and  at  Great 
Bend  were  to-day  filled  up  to  a  height  of  1350  feet  above 
ocean,  that  is  about  200  feet  above  the  present  water  plain 
at  Thompson's,  and  120  feet  at  Great  Bend,  precisely  anal- 
ogous results  to  those  indicated  above  would  occur.  The 
old  outlet  at  Cassadaga  lake  would  be  re-opened ;  as  it 
deepened  the  waters  would  all  centre  near  Falconer's,  and 
thus  no  doubt  in  the  process  of  time  the  old  valleys  would 
be  swept  of  their  superficial  deposits,  and  the  ancient  floors 
again  be  laid  bare. 


356  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

The  Conneaut  Northern  Outlet. 

§  615.  The  Oil  creek  and  Conneaut  water-basins  both 
present  in  their  topographic  features  evidences  of  the  ex- 
istence of  buried  channels,  drift-barriers,  glacial  cuts,  and 
reversed  streams,  very  similar  to  those  of  the  Chautauqua 
water-basin. 

As  the  old  valleys  are  traced  northward,  the  superficial 
deposits  are  found  to  increase  in  thickness ;  the  old  floor 
approaches  nearer  and  nearer  to  tide-level ;  and  the  diffi- 
culties in  the  way,  supposing  that  the  waters,  while  exca- 
vating these  ancient  valleys,  delivered  through  any  south- 
ern outlet  now  discoverable,  become  quite  insurmountable. 

The  present  outlet  of  Oil  creek  water-basin,  is  Oil  Creek, 
which  joins  the  Allegheny  river  at  Oil  City ;  and  that  of 
the  Conneaut  water-basin  is  French  creek,  entering  the  Al- 
legheny river  at  Franklin. 

On  Oil  creek,  the  old  valley  floor  is  found  at  the  entrance 
of  the  high  lands,  just  below  Titusville,  at  a  tide-level  alti- 
tude of  1125'.  Nine  miles  further  north,  at  Grey's  well, 
near  Clappville,  it  was  not  reached  at  1034'. 

On  French  creek  the  elevations  are  948'  at  Franklin,  and 
800'  at  Canfield  well,  23  miles  above  Franklin,  (equal  to 
about  780'  at  the  mouth  of  Conneaut  outlet,  20  miles  from 
Franklin.) 

These  figures  afford  proof  positive  that  the  old  rock  beds 
on  these  two  streams,  between  the  points  named  above, 
slope  downward  towards  the  north  at  a  rate  on  Oil  creek  of 
at  least  10  feet  to  the  mile,  and  on  French  creek,  (if  calcu- 
lated to  Conneaut  outlet,)  of  not  less  than  8£  feet. 

A  continuous  and  elevated  range  of  hills  heavily  capped 
with  conglomerate  and  sandstone,  lying  to  the  southeast  of 


THE  CONNEAUT  NOETHEEN  OUTLET. 


III.  357 


these  two  basins,  forbids  the  supposition  that  other  outlets 
than  those  named  above  might  be  found  leading  into  the 
Allegheny.  It  is  evident,  from  the  shape  of  the  surround- 
ing country,  that  if  these  waters  passed  southward  at  any 
time  during  the  pre-glacial  period,  they  must  have  flowed 
through  the  channels  occupied  by  the  present  streams. 

The  following  tables,  showing  the  depth  of  drift  and 
slope  of  old  floors  along  Oil  creek  and  French  creek,  will 
throw  light  on  this  part  of  the  subject. 

Oil  creeJc. — Elevations  above  tide  and  thickness  of  super- 
ficial deposits : 


Surface 

Depth 
of  drift. 

IQld 
floor. 

Oil  City                                      ... 

1008' 

50' 

958' 

Rouseville                        ... 

1036 

40 

996 

1089 

40 

1049 

Pioneer 

1099 

45 

1054 

(1115)* 

50 

1065 

Miller  farm,   

1131 

45 

1086 

Boughton, 
Bissell  farm,  junction  of  Pine  creek,     ..;... 

(1157) 
(1170) 

30 
45 

1127 
1125 

Titusville,      

1194 

94 

1100 

Grey  well,  8  miles  above  Titusville,  

(1260) 

2264- 

1034— 

French  creek. — Elevations  above  tide  and  thickness  of 
superficial  deposits : 


Surface. 

Depth 
of  drift. 

Old 
floor. 

Franklin,    .                         ... 

988' 

40' 

948' 

Sugar  creek,  . 

1014 

40 

974 

Canfield  well,                 ... 

1070 

2704- 

800 

Note  how  remarkably  the  thickness  of  drift  south  of  the 
Titusville  flats,  and  between  Sugar  creek  and  Franklin, 
agrees  with  that  on  the  Allegheny  river,  previously  given  ; 
and  how  quickly  it  begins  to  thicken  going  northward  from 
these  points. 

The  figures  show  a  change  of  slope  in  the  ancient  floors 


1  The  figures  in  brackets  are  close  approximations. 


358  III.   REPOKT  OF  PROGEESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

of  Oil  creek  and  of  French  creek  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
Conglomerate  ridge  before  spoken  of,  which,  aside  from 
other  considerations,  makes  it  appear  quite  improbable 
that  these  two  valleys  south  of  the  ridge  were  excavated  by 
the  currents  which  eroded  the  deeper  valleys  north  of  it. 
And  if  they  were  not  thus  excavated — that  is,  if  the  waters 
of  ancient  Pine  creek  and^Upper  Oil  creek  did  not  originally 
find  exit  through  the  present  main  trunk  of  Oil  creek  at 
Oil  City, — then  they  must  have  flowed  northward  into 
French  creek.  If  the  waters  of  ancient  French  creek  and 
its  tributaries  did  not  join  the  Allegheny  at  Franklin,  they 
could  only  find  a  delivery  northward  through  Conneaut 
lake  and  Conneaut  creek  into  the  Lake  Erie  basin. 

§  616.  With  the  scanty  materials  at  command  let  us  at- 
tempt to  trace  these  ancient  valleys  toward  Conneaut  lake, 
and  see  if  it  appears  feasible  to  deliver  their  waters  in  that 
direction. 

Oil  creek  and  French  creek  elevations  above  ocean,  and 
slope  per  mile  of  old  valley-floors  : 


Old 
floor. 

Fall. 

Miles. 

Rate. 

1125 

Bissell  farm*  to  Titusville,  

25 

2 

12'  5" 

1100 

Titusville  to  Grey's  well 

66 

7 

9'  5" 

1034 

Grey's  well  to  (Janfield  well,     

234 

35 

6'  8" 

This  shows  that  there  is  ample  fall  in  the  ancient  valley- 
floor  (if  the  valley  be  continuous,  and  of  regular  grade 
along  the  line  indicated  on  Plate  No.  2)  to  deliver  the  Pine 
creek  and  Upper  Oil  creek  waters  at  Canfield  well  on  French 
creek,  three  miles  above  the  mouth  of  Conneaut  outlet ; 
and  since  this  well  is  said  to  have  been  abandoned  before 
reaching  bed-rock,  the  fall  is  probably  greater  than  that 
figured  in  the  table. 

Starting  now  at  Grey's  well  on  Oil  creek,  and  distributing 
the  ascertained  fall  pro  rata  according  to  distance,  we  get 
the  following  elevations  above  tide  for  the  ancient  floor  at 
the  points  named. 

*  This  is  where  Oil  creek  enters  the  highlands  at  the  mouth  of  Pine  creek, 
below  Titusville. 


THE  CONKEAUT  NORTIIEEN  OUTLET.  III.  859 

Grey's  well,  old  floor  above  tide, =1034' 

Summit  between  west  branch  of  Oil  creek  and  Muddy 

creek,  20'  lower,  (dist.  3  miles,  fall  per  mile  6'  8"=20')=1014' 
Little  Cooley,  on  Muddy  creek,  (3|  milesX6'  10"  fall=24')=  990' 
Cambridge,  on  French  creek,  (10>  milesX6'  8"  fall=70')=  920' 
Meadville,  on  French  creek,  (15  milesXS'  8"  fall=lOO)  =  820' 
Cantield  well,  on  French  creek,  (3  miles><6'  8"  fall=20')  =  800' 
Mouth  of  Conneaut  outlet,  (3  milesX6'  8''  fall=20')  .  .  .  =  780' 

§  617.  From  these  elevations  we  may  ascertain  the  proba- 
ble amount  of  superficial  deposits  at  each  point,  thus : 


* 

Surface. 

d 
P 

Old  floor. 

Grey's  Well    (measured  ) 

1260 

226 

1034 

1358 

344 

1014 

Little  Cooley,    

1200 

210 

990 

1140 

220 

920 

Meadville 

1075 

255 

820 

Canfield  Well,  (measured,)   

1070 

270 

800 

Conneaut  Outlet  

1065 

285 

780 

Nothing  improbable  appears  in  the  above  exhibit.  The 
depth  of  drift  required  to  make  this  route  available  is  in  no 
place  greater  than  what  might  reasonably  be  expected  ;  for 
both  on  the  summit  where  the  branches  of  Oil  creek  and 
Muddy  creek  rise  interlocking  together  among  a  nest  of  low 
drift  hills,  and  also  at  Little  Cooley,  Cambridge  and  Mead- 
ville, everything  betokens  very  heavy  drift  deposits.  The 
valleys  are  broad,  the  side  hills  sloping,  affording  ample 
room  for  a  grand  old  channel  of  the  depth  and  width  re- 
quired ;  and  all  the  surroundings  favor  the  inference  that 
such  an  one  once  existed  there. 

No  one  who  examines  the  superficial  features  of  the  coun- 
try can  fail  to  conclude  that  all  the  drainage  of  Oil  Creek 
basin  and  so  much  of  the  Conneaut  as  did  not  fall  directly 
into  Conneaut  outlet,  once  centered  in  French  creek  and 
passed  down  as  far  as  its  junction  with  the  Conneaut  Lake 
outlet,*  From  this  point  then  it  must  either  have  gone 

*  In  1877,  before  the  idea  of  a  northern  outlet  to  the  Oil  Creek  basin  had 
been  entertained,  Prof.  Chas  E.  Hall,  who  had  been  giving  considerable  at- 
tention to  the  drift-deposits  in  eastern  Pennsylvania,  came  out  to  inspect  the 
drifts  in  the  vicinity  of  Titusville.  After  a  thorough  examination  of  the  sin- 
gular deposit  lying  basined  in  the  hills  south  of  Titusville  flats,  and  nearly  op- 


360  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

southeasterly  into  the  Allegheny  river,  or  northwesterly 
into  the  Lake  Erie  basin.  These  are  the  only  two  possible 
channels  for  it ;  which  one  did  it  follow  \ 

TVe  have  very  good  evidence  that  the  ancient  valley  floor 
at  the  Conneaut  outlet  junction  is  not  higher  than  780' 
above  tide.  At  the  best  then  it  is  168'  below  the  bottom  of 
the  mouth  of  French  Creek  at  Franklin,  and  60'  below  the 
old  floor  of  the  Allegheny  at  Parker's,  60  miles  further 
south.  There  could  have  been  no  outlet,  therefore,  in  this 
southward  direction  with  the  present  status  of  levels. 

But  the  northward  outlook  is  more  favorable  ;  for,  the 
bed  rock  at  the  junction  lies  about  207'  above  the  surface  of 
Lake  Erie  ;  and  this  free  delivery  can  be  reached  by  the 
valleys  of  Conneaut  outlet  and  Conneaut  creek  in  a  travel 
of  about  43  miles  ;  which  gives  an  average  fall  of  4  feet 
10  inches  to  the  mile.  The  distance  would  be  greater,  fol- 
lowing the  present  windings  of  Conneaut  creek,  but  the 
probabilities  are  that  the  old  stream  did  not  wander  to 
westward  as  far  as  the  present  one  does  ;  but  rather,  that 

poslte  the  mouth  of  Caldwell  creek,  we  became  convinced  that  it  filled  an  old 
vaJlay — that  it  had  been  transported  from  the  north  through  Crouse  run  and 
Caldwell  creek — and  that  there  could  not  possibly  be  any  continuation  of  the 
buried  channel  leading  into  Oil  creek  toward  the  southwest.  Then,  knowing 
the  fact  tint  th3  old  floor  beneith  Oil  creek  on  Watson's  flats  was  from  50  to 
60  feet  lower  than  it  was  a  mile  further  south  where  the  stream  enters  the 
gorge  cut  through  the  highlands,  we  conclu  led  to  look  for  a  northern  outlet. 

Procuring  a  conveyance  we  drove  up  Oil  creek  to  Clappville  ;  pas-ed  over 
the  divide  to  Muddy  creek,  thence  to  Little  Cooley,  and  so  on  to  Cambridge 
on  French  creek.  Down  to  this  point  there  was  no  apparent  difficulty  in  the 
way,  either  in  levels  or  in  the  width  of  valleys  and  probabilities  of  drift-fill- 
ing, and  wo  felt  confident  that  we  had  been  fallowing  the  coursa  of  the  ancient 
stream. 

From  Cambridge  a  very  broad  valley  ex.ends  northward  to  Conneautee 
Lake,  Avhich  lies  about  70  feet  above  French  creek.  It  looked  as  if  the  an- 
cient stream  had  found  its  way  into  the  Lake  Erie  basin  through  this  depres- 
sion— but  on  arriving  at  Conneautee  we  were  met  bj-  a  broad  ridge  of  strati- 
fied rocks  through  which  it  was  evident  no  buried  channel  could  extend. 
We  then  drove  northeaster^-  to  Waterford,  on  Le  Boeuf  creek,  where  the  R.  R. 
elevation  isonlyOO  feet  above  Cam  bridge.  The  width  of  valley  and  great  accu- 
mulation of  drift  here  seen,  made  an  outlet  in  this  direction  seem  possible. 
We  then  turned  north  toward  Lake  Erie,  but  on  reaching  the  summit  swamp 
on  the  divide,  r.t  an  elevation  of  1260  feet  above  tide,  became  satisfied  that  this 
route  was  also  impracticable,  and  consequently  abandoned  all  expectations  of 
finding  an  outlet  except  through  the  southwesterly  continuation  of  French 
creek. 


THE  CO^JNTEAUT  JSTOKTIIERX  OUTLET.  III.  361 

it  flowed  through  a  more  direct  but  now  obliterated  or  con- 
cealed channel  leading  from  the  big  bend  into  Lake  Erie. 

§  618.  There  is  no  necessity  for  confining  this  fall  within 
the  narrow  limits  afforded  by  the  present  Lake  Erie  surface, 
for  the  old  valley-floor  may  have  been  far  below  the  present 
water-level  of  the  Lake.  It  has  been  demonstrated  that 
the  bottom  of  ancient  Cuyahoga  valley  at  Cleveland  lies 
at  least  228'  below  the  present  level  of  Lake  Erie  ;  and  other 
streams  entering  the  lake  are  known  to  be  flowing  far  above 
their  former  beds.  * 

There  is  no  difficulty,  then,  in  obtaining  ample  fall  to 
carry  the  French  creek  waters  into  the  great  valley  now 
occupied  by  Lake  Erie,  provided  the  old  floor  could  be 
shown  to  have  an  uniform  slope.  This  unfortunately  can- 
not be  done,  for  no  wells  have  been  sunk  along  the  course 
of  the  old  stream.  But  having  seen  that  the  waters  could 
not  have  had  an  outlet  towards  the  south,  and  that  this  is 
the  only  oilier  available  outlet  for  them,  we  are  warranted 
in  concluding,  in  the  absence  of  positive  evidence  to  the 
contrary,  that  the  old  stream-bed  was  adjusted  to  proper 
grade  ;  and  more  especially  so,  if  we  shall  find  that  this 
grade  would  not  require  an  extraordinary  amount  of  drift- 
filling  on  the  supposition  that  the  old  stream  has  been  ob- 
literated and  the  current  reversed. 

From  French  creek  to  the  head  of  Conneaut  lake  is  a  dis- 
tance of  about  15  miles.  By  adopting  a  slope  of  five  feet 
per  mile  from  our  ascertained  elevation  of  bed-rock  on 
French  creek,  789',  we  get  a  fall  of  75'  to  Conneaut  lake, 
which  puts  the  old  valley-floor  there  at  705'.  The  present 
surface  water-level  of  Conneaut  lake  is  1082';  consequently 
(1082' — 70.5'=)  377'  is  the  required  thickness  of  filling  un- 

*  "All  these  streams  [Grand  river,  the  Cuyahoga,  Black  river,  the  Huron, 
Portage,  Maume,  &c.  ]  now  enter  the  Lake  from  one  hundred  to  two  hundred 
feet  above  their  ancient  beds,  and  when  they  flowed  in  their  deeply  buried 
rocky  channels,  Lake  Erie  had  no  existence  as  a  lake,  but  was  a  valley  tra- 
versed by  Detroit  river,  which  flowed  north  of  Point  Pele  island,  at  least  two 
hundred  feet  below  the  present  lake  level,  and  received  the  streams  I  have 
mentioned  as  its  tributaries."— Dr.  J.  S.  Newberry,  iu  Geology  of  Ohio,  Vol. 
II,  p.  199, 


362  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

derneath  it,  and  not  extraordinary,  considering  the  charac- 
ter of  Conneaut  outlet  and  the  surroundings  of  the  lake.* 

§  619.  The  surroundings  of  Conneaut  are  similar  to  those 
of  Cassadaga  lake  ;  and  here  also  a  low  barrier  of  drift  pre- 
vents the  Conneaut  water  from  flowing  northward.  But 
the  descent  from  Conneaut  lake  to  Conneaut  creek  is  not 
nearly  as  great  or  as  abrupt  as  it  is  from  Cassadaga  lake 
to  Canadaway  creek ;  consequently  the  drift-filling  is  not 

*  It  should  not  be  inferred  from  the  methods  above  pursued  in  tracing  the 
old  valley-floors  by  relative  levels  above  ocean,  that  we  are  attempting  to 
give  actual  profiles  of  the  beds  of  pre-glacial  streams.  This  could  not  be 
done,  even  if  all  our  valleys  were  as  thoroughly  perforated  by  drill-holes  as 
parts  of  Allegheny  river,  Oil  creek,  and  the  Tunangwant  have  been,  for  the 
present  contours  of  the  old  floors  do  not  represent  what  they  were  at  the 
commencement  of  the  Ice  Age,  but  what  they  came  to  be  long  subsequently, 
when  the  conditions  had  become  such  as  to  allow  them  to  begin  to  retain  the 
drift  deposits  now  found  lying  upon  them.  I  have  no  doubt  whatever  that 
these  channels  were  greatly  altered  and  modified  during  the  continuance  of 
the  Ice  Age,  some  of  them  having  been  considerably  and  regularly  deepened, 
and  others,  owing  to  some  peculiar  action  of  the  ice  and  under-ice-currents, 
(operating  in  a  manner  which,  as  yet,  seems  obscure,)  having  been  actually 
excavated  in  long  basins  or  sink-holes  considerably  deeper  than  their  outlets. 

The  point  in  discussion  is,  not  what  were  the  precise  ph3rsical  conditions  of 
cut  and  slope  in  these  old  valleys,  but  did  our  streams  always  flow  in  the 
directions  they  now  flow,  or  have  some  of  their  currents  been  reversed?  Did 
the  immense  amount  of  excavated  material  from  these  deep  old  valleys  of  the 
north,  draining  an  area  of  more  than  7500  square  miles,  all  pass  out  in  one 
turbid  stream  through  the  Allegheny  river  below  Franklin,  or  did  they  flow 
northward  by  several  channels  into  the  valley  of  Lake  Erie? 

In  preparing  to  answer  these  questions,  one  would  naturally  be  led  to  first 
examine  the  Allegheny  river  below  Franklin,  where  it  must  have  received 
and  forwarded  all  of  these  concentrated  waters,  to  see  if  the  depth  and  width 
and  topographical  aspects  of  the  valley  were  such  as  might  be  expected  in 
one  through  which  had  passed  the  currents  of  ages,  carrying  mamr  cubic  miles 
of  sediment  eroded  from  the  mountains  and  valleys  to  the  north  ;  and  which, 
consequently,  must  have  furnished  a  free  avenue  for  the  unobstructed  flow 
of  glaciers  during  the  whole  of  the  Ice  Age.  And  if,  upon  such  examination, 
he  became  satisfied  that  the  channel  did  not  present  satisfactory  evidences  of 
having  been  subjected  to  the  tremendous  wear  and  tear  of  the  mechanical 
agencies  belonging  to  such  currents  of  water  and  ice,  he  would  then  look 
elsewhere,  not  only  for  other  outlets  to  convey  the  waters,  but  for  additional 
facts  to  support  his  conclusions  in  relation  to  the  inadequacy  of  the  Allegheny 
channel  for  the  performance  of  the  work  required  of  it,  if  it  had  always  been 
the  only  outlet. 

In  the  pursuance  of  these  latter  objects  the  above  levels  are  given,  and  they 
are  to  be  taken  for  what  they  are  worth,  as  collateral  aids  to  assist  in  weigh- 
ing the  probabilities  for  or  against  the  theory  of  northern  drainage  in  pre- 
glacial  times. 


PL  XLI. 


Conneaui  Northern  Outlet. 


TIL  363 


\Ibotonulla* 


364  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

so  well  exposed  below  lake  level  at  the  north.  Conneaut 
barrier  lies  like  a  core  in  the  old  valley,  with  a  surface 
sloping  quite  gradually  both  north  and  south  from  its  point 
of  maximum  thickness ;  while  Cassadaga  barrier  slopes 
very  gradually  to  the  south,  but  cuts  off  abruptly  on  the 
north,  as  seen  in  the  following  sketches,  Plate  XLI : 

The  shape  of  the  trough  receiving  the  deposit,  necessarily 
determines  the  shape  of  the  core  within  it.  Cassadaga  lies 
so  high  above  Lake  Erie  (1305' — 573'=732/)  and  so  near  the 
lake  plain  bordering  it,  (being  only  about  five  miles  from 
Laona,  where  the  elevated  side-walls  of  the  old  valley  ter- 
minate,) that  there  is  not  length  enough  in  the  excavation 
for  such  materials  as  these  to  form  a  permanent,  gradual 
slope.  They  could  not  stand  at  a  surface  gradient  as  steep 
as  one  hundred  and  forty-five  feet  per  mile  if  any  consider- 
able volume  of  drainage  passed  over  them. 

The  waters  of  Canadaway  creek  entering  the  old  valley 
from  the  east,  about  midway  between  Cassadaga  and  Laona, 
have  carried  out  a  large  amount  of  material  and  reduced 
the  slope  of  the  drift-filled  valley  below  that  point.  But 
above  this  a  natural  dam  stretches  across  the  valley,  rising 
steeply  to  the  height  of  350  feet  and  holding  Cassadaga 
lake  upon  its  top.  This  steep  slope  is  subject  only  to  the 
wash  of  the  rainfall  received  upon  it ;  and  how  quickly  the 
barrier  would  be  removed  if  once  broken  by  a  stream  of 
water  passing  over  it,  may  be  judged  from  the  following 
circumstance : 

Some  thirty  or  forty  years  ago  the  mill  owners  on  Cana- 
daway creek  desiring  to  increase  their  supply  of  water  dur- 
ing dry  weather,  cut  a  small  ditch  through  the  low  gravel 
hills  at  the  head  of  Cassadaga  lake.,  thus  allowing  lake 
water  to  flow  north  into  Canadaway  creek.  The  stream, 
small  at  first,  soon  began  to  cut.  It  quickly  excavated  a 
gulley  fifty  or  sixty  feet  deep  on  the  steep  slope  of  the 
loose  materials  which  formed  the  dam,  and  cut  back  to- 
wards the  lake  so  alarmingly  that  the  people  of  the  neigh- 
borhood were  called  out  in  haste  to  fill  up  the  ditch,  that 
the  lake  might  be  preserved  from  drainage  and  the  country 
below  from  inundation. 


THE  CCWISTEAUT  NOETHEEN  OUTLET.  III.  365 

§  620.  But  the  situation  of  Conneaut  is  quite  different 
from  that  of  Cassadaga  lake  in  important  respects.  It  is 
223'  lower  than  Cassadaga  (being  1305'— 223'=1082/ ;  or  509 
feet  above  Lake  Erie)  and  the  old  trough  below  it  to  the 
north  is  protected  by  side-hills  for  a  distance  of  about  20 
miles.  In  addition  to  this,  Conneaut  creek,  on  emerging 
from  the  hills  forming  the  Lake  Erie  escarpment,  turns 
shortly  to  the  west,  and  after  a  very  devious  course  enters 
Lake  Erie  in  Ohio  ;  thus  adding  materially  to  the  length 
of  its  channel.  As  the  current  runs,  this  stream  must  be 
about  60  miles  in  length.  I  have  not  examined  that  part 
of  it  north  of  Crawford  county  line,  but  suspect  that  it 
leaves  the  old  valley  near  where  it  turns  westward.  The 
conditions  of  this  ancient  valley,  therefore,  favored  the  re- 
tention of  the  glacial  debris  swept  into  it.  It  filled  in  deep 
and  broad  between  the  protecting  hills,  and,  having  been 
leveled  off  on  a  natural  slope  as  the  waters  lowered  in  the 
lake  basin  to  the  north,  has  not  been  materially  altered  by 
subsequent  erosion. 

How  deep  the  drift  of  this  valley  between  the  lakes  may 
be,  we  have  no  positive  data  for  determining.  It  has  every 
characteristic  of  the  oil  region  valleys,  where  actual  meas- 
urements show  from  200  ft.  to  450  ft.,  and  is  unquestionably 
very  deeply  filled. 

About  a  mile  from  Conneautville  and  eight  miles  north 
of  Conneaut  lake,  an  oil  well  was  sunk  in  which  112  ft.  of 
quicksand  and  gravel  were  found  above  bed-rock.  The 
well  mouth  is  150'  below  Conneaut  lake,  and  it  does  not  ap- 
pear to  be  located  in  the  center  of  the  old  valley. 

Conneaut  lake  was  the  summit  reservoir  of  the  old  Beaver 
canal,  supplying  water  for  locking  down  both  north  and 
south.  To  increase  its  capacity,  an  aqueduct  about  twenty- 
one  miles  in  length  was  constructed,  through  which  the 
water  of  upper  French  creek  flowed  directly  into  the  lake 
and  raised  its  water-level  about  eight  feet.*  This  open  ca- 

*The  elevation  herein  used  for  Conneaut  lake  (1082  ft.  above  ocean)  is  the 
old  canal  summit  level.  Since  the  abandonment  of  the  canal  and  aqueduct 
and  the  dredging  of  the  lake  outlet,  the  water  surface  has  been  lowered  from 
10  to  12  feet. 


366  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

nal  tapped  French  creek  at  Bemustown,  two  and  a  half 
miles  above  Meadville,  and  following  the  east  side  of  the 
creek  to  its  junction  with  the  lake  outlet,  there  crossed  over 
the  stream  in  an  aqueduct  and  then  followed  along  the 
north-east  side  of  the  outlet  to  the  foot  of  the  lake. 

It  is  here  interesting  to  note,  as  showing  the  relative  lev- 
els of  different  localities,  that  if  this  canal  were  cut  through 
to  Titusville  on  the  alignment  of  the  ancient  stream,  as 
shown  on  Plate  No.  2,  all  the  waters  of  upper  Oil  creek, 
Pine  creek,  and  their  tributaries  would  flow  into  Conneaut 
lake,  instead  of  passing  to  the  south  down  the  main  trunk 
of  Oil  creek  as  they  do  at  present ;  and  the  current  would 
have  a  total  fall  of  about  ninety  feet  between  Titusville  and 
the  lake. 

§  621.  We  might  go  on  now  to  speak  of  the  evidences  of 
a  new  cut,  made  during  the  Glacial  epoch,  on  Oil  creek, 
between  Titusville  and  Petroleum  Centre,  and  of  another 
on  French  creek,  between  Utica  and  Franklin  ;  and  call  at- 
tention to  the  trend  of  lateral  valleys  and  the  aspects  of 
their  terminal  bluffs,  on  that  part  of  Oil  creek  between  Ti- 
tusville and  Clappville,  and  on  French  creek,  where  the 
streams  seem  to  have  been  reversed — but  it  would  only  be 
a  repetition  of  what  has  already  been  said  in  describing 
similar  features  in  the  Chautauqua  basin.  A  reference  to 
the  map  will  show  where  the  ancient  dividing  ridges  and 
more  recent  glacial-barriers  are  located,  as  indicated  by  a 
study  of  the  topography  of  the  country. 

While  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  more  abundant  and  posi- 
tive proofs  in  confirmation  of  the  hypothesis  of  a  former 
northern  drainage  for  these  basins  cannot  be  offered,  it 
must  be  admitted  that  the  facts  already  presented  are  suffi- 
cient to  make  it  appear  not  only  possible  but  very  probable, 
for  in  no  other  way  can  the  phenomena  observed  in  connec- 
tion witb  the  drainage  and  the  drifts  be  satisfactorily  ac- 
counted for. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

Excavation  of  Lake  Erie. 

§  622.  Ancient  valleys,  similar  to  those  mentioned  in  the 
preceding  chapter,  are  known  to  enter  the  lake-basin  in  Ohio, 
as  shown  in  the  extracts  before  quoted.  The  drift-filling 
in  them,  like  that  in  those  of  our  own  State,  is  an  unim- 
peachable witness  of  pre-glacial  excavation  ;  and  the  direc- 
tion in  which  they  all  trend  proves  plainly  the  former  exist- 
ence of  a  main  channel  of  delivery  to  ocean  through  the 
present  Lake  Erie  basin,  and  an  ancient  divide  between  the 
water-sheds  of  the  Mississippi  valley  and  the  lakes.  How 
did  the  crest  of  that  divide  compare,  geographically,  with 
the  present  one  ?  In  Pennsylvania,  if  the  above  expressed 
views  regarding  the  pre-glacial  flow  of  the  upper  Allegheny 
and  its  tributaries  be  correct,  the  old  crest  must  necessarily 
have  been  many  miles  south  of  the  present  one,  and  have 
had  quite  a  different  trend.  From  the  lack  of  requisite 
data,  the  old  ridge  cannot  be  located  with  so  much  assur- 
ance in  New  York  and  Ohio  as  in  Penn'a ;  but  I  have  en- 
deavored to  trace  it  approximately  both  east  and  west,  on 
contour  map,  Plate  No.  2  bis.,  in  order  that  the  continuity 
of  the  divide  might  be  preserved  to  illustrate  what  is  to 
follow. 

That  such  a  ridge  existed  somewhere  in  this  region  can- 
not be  doubted,  and  the  reasons  for  locating  it,  as  seen  on 
the  map,  will  be  apparent  as  we  proceed.  It  was  the  bar- 
rier between  two  systems  of  river  drainage  and  the  source 
of  their  supplies — one  delivering  to  the  north  of  it,  and  the 
other  to  the  south.  The  table-lands  of  its  summit  may  have 
had  considerable  width,  and  the  head-water  streams  .may 
have  interlocked,  some  of  those  flowing  south  rising  north 
of  its  average  medial  crest,  and  some  of  those  flowing  north 
rising  south  of  it,  as  we  frequently  observe  in  similar  cases 

(  367  III.  ) 


368  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

now ;  but  it  was  an  unbroken  divide,  extending  from  the 
Catskill  mountains  in  New  York,  sweeping  around  the 
head  of  Lake  Erie,  and  thence  northwardly  through  Mich- 
igan to  the  vicinity  of  the  straits  of  Mackinaw,  and  had 
sufficient  altitude  to  originate  the  two  systems  of  drainage 
referred  to,  and  prevent  any  inter-communication  between 
the  waters  of  the  one  series  and  those  of  the  other. 

§  623.  What  was  the  actual  elevation  of  the  country  above 
ocean  at  that  time,  who  can  say  ?  It  would  appear  that  it 
could  hardly  have  been  lower  than  at  present ;  for  the  old 
floor  of  Cuyahoga  river  at  Cleveland  is  now  228  feet  below 
lake  level,  or  only  345  feet  above  ocean ;  and  the  bottoms  of 
lakes  Superior,  Huron,  Michigan,  and  Ontario  in  some 
places  are  known  to  be  from  200  to  500  feet  below  the  present 
ocean  level.  It  might  have  been  higher,  (and  indeed  it 
seems  quite  probable  that  it  was,)  but  inasmuch  as  any 
change  that  did  not  materially  alter  relative  levels,  would 
not  affect  our  argument ;  and  as  there  seems  to  be  nothing 
discoverable  in  relation  to  the  old  streams  of  Pennsylvania 
which  requires  a  supposititious  change  of  elevations  for  its 
explanation,  we  prefer  to  continue  our  discussion  on  the 
basis  of  the  present  status  of  levels ;  for,  by  so  doing  we 
shall  avoid  unnecessary  complications,  and  be  able  to  pre- 
sent more  concisely  the  facts  and  inferences  to  which  they 
lead.  We  want  it  distinctly  understood,  however,  that  we 
are  not  attempting  to  advance  a  new  theory,  but  only 
aiming  to  record  some  conclusions  (and  they  are  largely 
tentative)  drawn  from  local  observations  in  northwestern 
Pennsylvania,  hoping  that  they  may  prove  suggestive,  at 
least,  and  be  of  some  assistance  to  others  in  a  more  com- 
prehensive study  of  the  drift  phenomena  of  this  latitude. 

Judging  then  from  the  present  configuration  and  altitude 
of  this  divide  it  is  inferred  that,  at  the  commencement  of 
the  glacial-epoch,  its  summit  could  not  have  been  less  than 
900  feet  above  ocean  in  its  lowest  part — which  was  in  north- 
western Ohio  ;  and  2600  feet  in  its  highest  part — which  was 
in  northern  Pennsylvania;  and  considering  the  extent  of 
erosion  accomplished  since  that  time,  on  mountain  top  as 
well  as  in  valleys,  it  may  safely  be  assumed  that  it  was 


EXCAVATION  OF  LAKE  ERIE.  III.  369 

much  higher.  In  any  event  it  was  high  enough  to  originate 
the  streams  flowing  northward  into  the  basin  of  the  lakes, 
and  southward  into  the  Mississippi  valley — the  buried  chan- 
nels of  which  still  remain  on  both  sides  of  the  divide  as 
witnesses  of  the  fact. 

At  that  time,  we  may  picture  the  country  north  of  the 
divide  (and  that  to  the  south  must  have  been  very  similar) 
as  a  region  of  sharp  and  broken  ridges,  traversed  by  pro- 
found gorges,  some  of  them  no  doubt  more  than  1500  feet 
deep,  and  occupied  by  rapid  streams,  all  delivering  into  a 
grand  trunk  river  which  probably  swept  around  somewhat 
centrally  through  the  basins  of  lakes  Erie  and  Ontario  into 
the  St.  Lawrence* — the  drainage  and  detritus  of  a  vast  area 
being  thus  poured  into  the  ocean  through  a  single  channel, 
and  this  stream  meeting  tide-water  in  latitude  more  than 
eight  degrees  north  of  some  of  its  sources  of  supply. 

This  is  the  situation  as  it  presents  itself  to  our  view  be- 
fore the  country  was  invaded  by  ice.  Then,  probably  owing 
to  cosmic  causes,  an  arctic  climate  supervened.  But  the 

*  Whether  this  stream  headed  in  Lake  Huron  basin  or  on  the  southeastern 
slope  of  the  Cincinnati  anticlinal,  is  left  an  open  question.  Possibly  the  con- 
nection between  Erie  and  Huron  was  made  through  the  anticlinal  during  the 
Ice  Age,  and  that  previously  the  waters  of  Huron  basin  flowed  out  through 
the  Maumee,  and  those  of  Michigan  through  the  buried  channel  connecting 
it  with  the  Mississippi. 

In  the  absence  of  positive  knowledge  to  the  contrary,  and  because  no  other 
avenue  seems  feasible,  I  have  assumed  that  the  St.  Lawrence  valley  must  have 
been  the  ancient  ocean  outlet  for  the  pre-glacial  waters.  A  buried  channel 
several  hundred  feet  in  depth,  beneath  the  present  bed  of  the  Mohawk,  has 
frequently  been  referred  to  as  a  probable  connection  between  Lake  Ontario 
and  the  Hudson.  But  a  brief  study  of  the  gap  at  Little  Falls,  in  Herkimer 
county,  N.  Y.,  ought  to  satisfy  any  one  that  no  buried  channel  exists  there, 
whatever  the  conditions  may  be  to  the  east  or  to  the  west  of  that  point ;  and  I 
can  see  no  possibility  of  there  being  an  abandoned  channel  either  to  the  north 
or  to  the  south  of  it.  Here  the  metamorphic  rocks  come  up  at  a  sharp  angle 
and  form  not  only  the  bed  of  the  stream,  but  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
side-walls.  The  cut  can  scarcely  exceed  100  rods  in  width— the  side  hills  rise 
abruptly  at  least  300  feet  in  height— and  the  elevation  of  the  top  of  the  falls  is 
about  380  feet  above  ocean,  or  ISO  feet  above  the  surface  of  Lake  Ontario.  An- 
other gap  of  about  the  same  width,  and  cut  through  similar  rocks,  may  be 
seen  at  the  "Nose,"  near  Yost,  about  24  miles  east  of  Little  Falls.  These 
facts  induce  me  to  regard  the  Mohawk  valley  only  as  an  auxiliary  outlet, 
opened  during  the  Ice  Age  by  the  overflow  of  ice  and  water  from  the  great 
central  mer  de  place.  It  has  neither  the  depth  nor  the  width  that  we  should 
expect  it  to  have,  if  it  had  been  opened  anterior  to  that  time. 
24  III. 


370  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN"  F.   CARLL. 

glaciers  did  not  come  down  at  once  from  their  northern 
fastnesses  like  an  irresistible  avalanche,  plowing  up  every- 
thing before  them — scooping  out  the  lake  basins,  filling  up 
old  channels,  scaling  the  dividing  ridge,  and  re-sculpturing 
the  Mississippi  slope  as  they  passed  on  with  a  grand  sweep 
towards  the  south.  Ages  on  ages  were  consumed  in  accom- 
plishing all  this,  and  the  specific  methods  by  which  the 
transformations  were  wrought  varied  at  different  periods 
and  in  different  places,  as  the  relative  relations  varied  be- 
tween the  eroding  agents  and  the  eroded  rocks.  In  one 
place,  advantage  of  position  saved  soft  rocks  from  destruc- 
tion ;  in  another,  direct  exposure  insured  the  degradation 
of  the  hardest.  We  may  study  now  on  the  surface  only 
the  particular  features  resulting  from  the  concluding  por- 
tion of  the  work — the  faint  marks,  as  it  were,  of  the  sculp- 
tor's finishing- chisel  upon  the  statue;  what  the  different 
stages  were  in  the  process  of  quarrying  the  block  and  out- 
lining the  figure  in  the  rough,  and  just  how  the  work  pro- 
gressed from  time  to  time  may  be  conjectured,  but  cannot 
with  exactness  be  described,  for  the  petrographic  inscrip- 
tions by  which  alone  this  detailed  history  could  be  read 
have  mostly  disappeared  with  the  wasting  rocks  upon  which 
they  were  written;  the  last  tablet  alone  remains  to  be 
studied. 

§  624.  But  in  imagination  we  may  look  back  into  the 
abysmal  past  and  attempt  to  briefly  outline  some  of  the 
sequences  which  would  probably  result  from  the  natural 
advance,  occupation  and  retreat  of  a  continental  glacier  in 
a  district  presenting  the  features  above  described. 

On  the  hypothesis  of  a  gradual  increment  of  ice  proceed- 
ing from  a  northern  nucleus,  and  a  steady  southward  pro- 
gress of  arctic  conditions  of  climate,  we  should  expect  to 
see  the  great  ice  wall  from  the  north  creeping  down  slowly 
partly  by  a  movement  of  its  own,  but  more  sensibly  by  the 
accumulations  of  new  materials  along  its  face  and  in  front 
of  it.  Step  by  step  it  advances — it  stretches  across  the 
mouth  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  travels  onward,  occupying  more 
and  more  of  its  valley. and  soon  seriously  impedes  the  de- 
livery of  its  waters,  which  now  can  only  find  an  outlet  be- 


EXCAVATION  OF  LAKE  ERIE.  III.  371 

neath  the  ice,  or  through  a  channel  way  which  the  ice-move- 
ment tends  to  constantly  fill  and  obstruct.  Meantime  the 
increasing  rigors  of  the  climaf  3  begin  to  produce  their  effect 
along  the  great  divide  to  the  south.  The  snow  and  ice  of 
winter,  which  at  first  barely  melted  before  another  crop 
appeared,  now  remain  over  and  accumulate  from  year  to 
year.  They  slip  from  the  steep  hill-sides,  carrying  with 
them  large  masses  of  disintegrated  rocks,  and  fill  up  the 
deep  gorges.  Thus  the  process  goes  slowly  on  until  the 
whole  basin  draining  into  the  St.  Lawrence  becomes  one 
grand  mer  de  glace  whose  overflows  of  ice  must  now  neces- 
sarily be  toward  the  south. 

Through  all  this  period,  and  indeed  during  the  entire 
duration  of  the  Ice  Age,  immense  quantities  of  water  must 
have  been  accumulating  beneath  the  ice  sheet.  The  under- 
ice-currents  conforming  to  the  general  outlines  of  drainage 
already  established,  all  converged  toward  the  common  trunk- 
stream,  and  this  channel  by  reason  of  its  trend  to  the  north- 
east, was  the  first  one  to  be  seriously  obstructed  by  solid  ice. 
No  doubt  the  ocean- seeking  currents  still  flowed  through 
crevasses,  and  in  ice-arched  channel  ways  beneath  the  glacier, 
but  the  capacity  of  the  aqueducts  was  inadequate  to  the 
delivery  required.  The  water  accumulated  as  in  an  ice- 
filled  lake,  until  the  surface  level  rose  and  another  outlet 
was  established  through  the  Mohawk  valley  ;  but  even  with 
this  auxiliary  in  operation  the  sub-glacial  waters  still  in- 
creased, finally  filling  the  basin  and  overtopping  the  rim  at 
several  low  places  in  the  crest  at  the  south. 

But  these  results  were  accomplished  only  through  the 
greatest  irregularity  in  the  operations  of  the  physical  agen- 
cies combining  to  produce  them.  The  peculiar  situation  of 
the  basin  induced  and  perpetuated  a  continual  antagonism 
between  the  dynamic  forces  of  the  ice  and  water  centering 
toward  or  contained  in  it.  The  main  shove  of  ice  was  to- 
warfl  the  south — while  the  only  egress  for  the  sub-glacial 
and  crevass  waters  was  to  the  northeast.  Where  a  glacier 
and  its  under- water  drain  move  in  the  same  course,  we  may 
suppose  that  the  ice-arch  will  be  kept  open  with  compara- 
tive ease  ;  but  where  the  ice- movement  is  at  right  angles, 


372  III.    KEPOKT  OF  PROGKESS.   JOHN  F.  CAKLL. 

or  approximately  so,  to  the  water-flow,  a  frequent  settling 
of  the  ice-roof  and  obstruction  of  the  channelway  must 
occur. 

Imagine  an  unbroken  sheet  of  ice,  say  2000  feet  in  thick- 
ness, gliding  down  the  Canadian  slopes  into  and  across  the 
old  valleys  of  Erie  and  Ontario  and  impinging  with  tre- 
mendous power  upon  the  southern  cliffs.  See  the  strug- 
gling waters  beneath,  impelled  by  a  static  pressure  of  from 
300  to  600  feet,  (varying  at  different  times  and  in  different 
places  according  to  the  fluctuating  height  of  the  water  sur- 
face above  the  valley  floor,)  seeking  an  outlet  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  old  channel  through  a  labyrinth  of  ice-arches 
supported  largely  by  pillars  and  walls  of  soft  rock  left 
between  the  eroding  sub-glacial  streams.*  The  cross-move- 
ment of  the  ice  current  would  undoubtedly  topple  over  and 
crush  down  these  combination  supports  of  ice  and  rock, 
shifting  the  currents  to  new  channels,  and  repeating  the  op- 
eration again  and  again.  By  the  crushing  and  grinding  of 
the  rock  the  material  was  prepared  for  easy  removal ;  by 
the  changing  channels  the  bottom  was  broadly  excavated  ; 
by  the  letting  down  of  the  ice -roof  the  water  and  ice  were 
kept  constantly  at  work  upon  the  rocks  ;  and  thus  the  val- 
leys were  gradually  widened  and  deepened. 

May  not  some  of  the  lake  basins  have  been  partly  exca- 
vated in  this  way  ?  Erie  and  Ontario  are  situated  precisely 
where  agencies  like  these  may  be  supposed  to  have  operated 
most  actively. 

§  625.  To  recapitulate,  it  seems  clear  that  a  system  of  pre- 
glacial  valleys  and  streams  existed  in  this  region  ;  that  their 
accumulated  waters  reached  the  ocean  either  through  the 
St.  Lawrence  or  the  Mohawk  and  Hudson,  most  probably 
through  the  former ;  that  the  great  divide  at  that  time 
could  not  have  been  less  than  600  feet  above  the  ancient 
valley-floor  near  the  present  head  of  Lake  Erie,  and  2000 

*  It  may  be  questioned  whether  the  depth  of  water  in  the  basin  was  not 
sufficient  at  some  stages  of  the  growth  and  decline  of  the  ice  sheets,  to  float 
large  fields  of  it.  But  even  if  the  mass  was  too  thick  to  float,  we  may  be  sure 
that  it  was  buoyed  up  by  the  water  beneath  it  and  rendered  more  susceptible 
to  the  guidance  of  the  influences  which  were  propelling  it  forward. 


EXCAVATION  OF  LAKE  ERIE.  III.  373 

feet  near  the  head  of  Lake  Ontario  ;  that  there  is  no  evi- 
dence of  a  change  of  levels  at  any  time  sufficient  to  throw 
the  waters,  (if  they  were  free  from  ice,)  from  the  bottom  of 
this  old  channel  backward  or  southward  over  the  old  di- 
vide into  the  Mississippi  valley.  We  cannot  avoid  the  in- 
ference, therefore,  that  causes  similar  to  those  described 
above  bore  an  important  part  in  the  excavation  of  the  lake 
basins,  whether  they  were  competent  to  the  performance  of 
all  the  work  that  has  been  done  or  not. 

§  626.  It  is  also  clear  that  at  some  period  subsequent  to 
the  erosion  of  the  ancient  river  valleys,  several  important 
gaps  were  cut  through  the  crest  of  the  great  pre-glacial 
divide,  between  streams  previously  taking  their  rise  upon 
it  and  flowing  in  opposite  directions. 

One  of  these  cuts  may  be  found  near  the  head  of  Seneca 
lake,  opening  a  communication  with  the  Susquehanna  river  ; 
present  elevation  above  ocean  880  feet. 

There  are  five  others  in  Ohio,  as  follows  :* 

1.  Between  Grand  river  and  the  Mahoning,  elevation   ....  936' 

2.  Between  Cuyahoga  river  and  the  Tuscarawas,  elevation       .  968' 

3.  Between  Black  river  and  the  Tuscarawas,  elevation  ....  909' 

4.  Between  Sandusky  river  and  the  Scioto,  elevation    ....  910' 

5.  Between  Maumee  river  and  the  Miami,  elevation,  ....      940' 

Still  another  gap,  the  lowest  in  elevation,  the  broadest 
and  most  important  one  of  all,  connects  the  valley  of  the 
Maumee  with  the  valley  of  the  Wabash,  the  summit  eleva- 
tion being  only  790  feet. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  these  southern  outlets  to  the  lake 
basin  are  cut  down  to  varying  levels,  being  precisely  of 
such  a  character  as  might  be  expected  to  result  from  the 
conditions  above  described.  They  appear  to  have  been 
surface  outlets  for  the  overflow  of  the  under-ice  waters  fol- 
lowing the  moving  glaciers  during  the  period  of  greatest 
accumulation  of  ice — intermittent  streams  dependent  upon 
the  fluctuating  levels  of  the  interior  sub-glacial  lake.  These 
water  levels,  I  imagine,  were  very  inconstant.  When  the 
sub-glacial  streams  were  delivering  freely  to  the  northeast 
the  water  line  would  fall ;  when  they  were  obstructed,  it 

*  Geology  of  Ohio,  Vol.  II,  page  47. 


374  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

would  rise.  There  were  sudden,  partial  stoppages  in  the 
main  channels,  periodic  accessions  to  the  quantity  of  water 
accumulating,  diversion  of  currents  by  crevasses  in  the  ice, 
and  barriers  formed  by  the  tortuous  movements  of  ice  cores 
which  projected  down  into  the  old  valleys  hundreds  of  feet 
below  the  free-moving  ice-sheets  of  the  surface  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  practically  separate,  for  a  time,  different 
parts  of  the  basin  one  from  another.  The  area  of  the  basin 
was  so  large,  the  water  communication  so  retarded  and  ex- 
posed to  so  many  accidental  conditions,  amounting  at  times 
to  almost  complete  stoppage  of  inter-communication,  that 
temporary  outlets  to  relieve  these  possible  contingencies 
might  be  maintained  intermittently  in  this  place  at  one 
elevation,  and  in  that  at  a  different  level  until  time  was 
afforded  for  an  equilibrium  to  be  restored. 

It  may  be  said  that  I  have  laid  too  much  stress  upon  the 
accumulation  and  action  of  sub-glacial  water  (a).  But 
witness  the  facts.  The  idea  that  the  Ice  Age  was  a  period 
of  cold  so  intense  that  it  was  not  possible  for  water  to  re- 
main in  a  fluid  state  beneath  it,  is  evidently  an  erroneous 
one.  Arctic  glaciers  to-day  are  the  sources  of  immense 
water-flows.  The  cold  producing  glaciers  is  atmospheric, 
not  terrene.  A  non-conducting  ice-sheet,  by  preventing 
radiation  and  induction  must  necessarily  increase  the  tem- 
perature of  the  earth' s  surface  beneath  it,  and  to  a  greater 
degree,  probably,  under  a  continental  glacier  than  under 
one  of  restricted  dimensions,  where  numerous  avenues  of 
ventilation  or  radiation  exist  around  its  edges  (b).  The 
luxuriant  growth  of  vegetation  in  close  proximity  to  the 
ice- wall  of  a  glacier  is  a  proof  that  the  soil  is  as  warm  there 
as  at  points  remote  from  it  (c). 

The  following  quotations  may  be  given  to  sustain  the 
views  above  advanced : 

(a)  "Our  progress  on  the  5th  [Sept.]  was  arrested  by  an- 
other bay  much  larger  than  any  we  had  seen  since  entering 
Smith's  Straits.  It  was  a  noble  sheet  of  water,  perfectly 
open,  and  thus  in  strange  contrast  to  the  ice  outside.  The 
cause  of  this,  at  the  time  inexplicable  phenomenon,  was 
found  in  a  roaring  and  tumultuous  river,  which,  issuing 


EXCAVATION  OF  LAKE  EKIE.  III.  375 

from  a  fiord  at  the  inner  sweep  of  the  bay,  rolled  with  the 
violence  of  a  snow-torrent  over  a  broken  bed  of  rocks. 
.This  river,  [Mary  Minturn  river,]  the  largest  probably  yet 
known  in  North  Greenland,  was  about  three  quarters  of  a 
mile  wide  at  its  mouth,  and  admitted  the  tides  for  about 
three  miles ;  when  its  bed  rapidly  ascended  and  could  be 
traced  by  the  configuration  of  the  hills  as  far  as  a  large 
inner  fiord.  Its  course  was  afterward  pursued  to  an  interior 
glacier,  from  the  base  of  which  it  was  found  to  issue  in 
numerous  streams,  that  united  into  a  single  trunk  about 
forty  miles  above  its  mouth." 

"  Some  seven  miles  further  on,  a  large  cape  projects  into 
this  bay  and  divides  it  into  two  indentations,  each  of  them 
the  seat  of  minor  water-courses,  fed  by  the  glaciers." — From 
"Arctic  Explorations  in  the  years  1853,  '<%,  '55 — By  ElisTia 
Kent  Kane."  Vol.  /,  p.  97. 

"The  glacier  was  about  seven  miles  across  at  its  'de- 
bouchd ;'  it  sloped  gradually  up  for  some  five  miles  back, 
and  then,  following  the  irregularities  of  its  rocky  sub- 
structure, suddenly  became  a  steep  crevassed  hill,  ascend- 
ing in  abrupt  terraces.  Then  came  two  intervals  of  less 
rugged  ice,  from  which  the  glacier  passed  into  the  great 
mer  de  glace." 

"The  discharge  of  water  from  the  lower  surface  of  the 
glacier  exceeded  that  of  any  of  the  northern  glaciers  ex- 
cept that  of  Humboldt  and  the  one  near  Etah.  One  tor- 
rent, on  the  side  nearest  me,  overran  the  ice-foot  from  two 
to  five  feet  in  depth,  and  spread  itself  upon  the  floes  for 
several  hundred  yards  ;  and  another,  finding  its  outlet  near 
the  summit  of  the  glacier,  broke  over  the  rocks,  and  poured 
in  cataracts  upon  the  beach  below." — Vol.  //,  pp.  270-272. 

(b)  "A  body  of  ice,  resplendent  in  the  sunshine  was  en- 
closed between  the  lofty  walls  of  black  basalt ;  and  from  its 
base  a  great  archway  or  tunnel  poured  out  a  dashing  stream 
into  the  lake,  disturbing  its  quiet  surface  with  a  horse-shoe 
of  foam.  *  *  *  The  stream  which  tunnels  its  way  out 
near  the  glacier-foot  is  about  ten  feet  in  diameter ;  and  I 
was  assured  that  it  never  completely  suspends  its  flow. 


376  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL 

Although  the  tunnel  closes  with  ice,  and  the  surface  of  the 
lake  freezes  for  many  feet  below,  the  water  may  still  be 
seen  and  heard  beneath,  even  in  midwinter,  wearing  its  way 
at  the  base  of  the  glacier." 

"  This  fact  is  of  importance,  as  it  bears  upon  the  tempera- 
ture of  deep  ice-beds.  It  shows  that  with  an  atmosphere 
whose  mean  is  below  zero  throughout  the  year,  and  a  mean 
summer  heat  but  4°  above  the  freezing-point,  these  great 
Polar  glaciers  retain  a  high  interior  temperature  not  far 
from  32°,  which  enables  them  to  resume  their  great  func- 
tions of  movement  and  discharge  readily,  when  the  cold  of 
winter  is  at  an  end,  and  not  improbably  to  temper  to  some 
extent  the  natural  rigor  of  the  climate.  Even  in  the  heart 
of  the  ice  nature  has  her  compensations." —  Vol.  If,  p.  207. 

"I  have  found  in  midwinter,  in  this  high  latitude  of  78°  50', 
the  surface  so  nearly  moist  as  to  be  friable  to  the  touch  ; 
and  upon  the  ice-floes,  commencing  with  a  surface-tempera- 
ture of — 30°,  I  found  at  two  feet  deep  a  temperature  of — 8°, 
at  four  feet-j-2°,  and  at  eight  feet-j-26°.  This  was  on  the 
largest  of  a  range  of  east  and  west  hummock-drifts  in  the 
open  way,  off  Cape  Stafford.  The  glacier  which  we  became 
so  familiar  with  afterward  at  Etah  yields  an  uninterrupted 
stream  throughout  the  year." — Vol.  /,  p.  267. 

(c)  "The  glaciers  are  moving  masses,  urged  down  the  in- 
clined planes  upon  which  they  are  situate  by  the  mutual 
pressure  of  their  parts,  a  movement  which  the  seasons  accel- 
erate or  retard,  according  to  their  character.  This  motion 
gives  rise  to  the  extraordinary  spectacle,  of  summer  produc- 
tions and  winter  formations  being  sometimes  in  immediate 
contact  with  each  other,  the  ice-fields  obtruding  into  flowery 
meadows,  and  gradually  forcing  their  way  into  the  regions 
of  cultivation.  According  to  Professor  Forbes,  the  very 
huts  of  the  peasantry  (in  the  range  of  the  Alpine  glaciers) 
are  sometimes  invaded  by  this  moving  ice,  and  many  per- 
sons now  living  have  seen  the  full  ears  of  corn  touching  the 
glacier,  or  gathered  ripe  cherries  from  the  trees  with  one 
foot  standing  on  the  ice."— "The  Gallery  of  Nature"  ~by 
Thomas  Milner, 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

The  Canadian  mer -de- glace,  and  the  Appalachian  mer- 
de-glace  /  their  encounter,  and  movement  westward  / 
northern  drift,  and  southern  drift ;  local  erosion;  erra- 
tics, and  local  deposits. 

§  627.  Two  movements  of  ice  over  the  highlands  of  north- 
ern Pennsylvania  and  southern  New  York  will  be  described 
in  this  chapter  ;  one  from  the  north  and  the  other  from  the 
south. 

§  628.  After  the  formation  of  the  great  mer-de-glace  on 
the  Laurentian  mountains  of  Canada,  and  its  progressive 
envelopment  of  the  Adirondack  mountains  of  New  York, 
and  of  the  entire  region  of  Lake  Ontario,  southward,  to  the 
highlands  which  enclose  the  Chautauqua  basin  of  the  up- 
per Allegheny  river  in  Pennsylvania  (described  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapters,)  this  continental  sheet  of  ice,  always  aug- 
mented in  thickness,  continued  to  rise  and  advance,  and 
finally  overtopped  and  flowed  over  those  highlands. 

To  what  height  above  tide  its  surface  attained  we  have 
no  means  of  ascertaining,  but  reasons  will  be  given  further 
on  for  believing  that  the  sheet  upqn  the  highlands  was  com- 
paratively thin  ;  for,  the  main  body  occupying  the  lower 
country  evidently  parted  into  two  lobes,  one  of  which  was 
deflected  southeastward  down  the  Susquehanna  valleys,  the 
other  south  westward  over  the  lower  highlands  and  through 
the  river  gaps  of  the  State  of  Ohio. 

§  629.  On  Plate  No.  2,  Ms,  I  have  endeavored  to  show, 
with  sufficient  approximation  to  exactness,  the  geographi- 
cal position  of  the  Chautauqua  highland  divide  and  its 
continuation  to  the  east  and  west ;  defining  it,  as  closely  as 
our  scattered  and  imperfect  data  will  permit,  by  contour 
lines  200  feet  apart  (vertically)  from  the  800'  tide  level  up- 
wards. 

(  377  III.  ) 


378  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

These  contour  lines,  of  course,  are  only  intended  to  rep- 
resent the  general  topograpJiical  features  over  which  the 
ice  moved,  all  the  minor  details  requisite  for  a  detailed  topo- 
graphical map  of  the  region  being  omitted,  many  of  which 
are  indeed  still  wanting. 

§  630.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  area  of  the  2400'  sum- 
mit is  small.  It  is  however  most  important,  from  the  fact 
that  it  forms  a  water-shed  with  three  slopes,  contributing 
to  the  St.  Lawrence  through  the  Genesee  river,  to  Chesa- 
peake bay  through  the  Susquehanna  river,  and  to  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico  through  the  Allegheny  and  Ohio  river  valleys. 

West  and  northwest  of  this  solid  continental  summit 
there  are  several  isolated  knobs  and  ridges  of  equal  or 
superior  altitude  ;  but  they  all  drain  into  the  valley  of  the 
Allegheny. 

§  631.  It  will  be  noticed  also,  that  inside  of  the  2000'  con- 
tour line  there  are  both  elevations  2500  feet  above  tide,  and 
valleys  with  buried  bottoms  not  more  than  1100  feet  above 
tide.  In  other  words,  erosion  has  here  cut  down  through 
a  vertical  section  of  surface  rocks  at  least  1400  thick. 

This  deeply  and  broadly  trenched  plateau  deserves  par- 
ticular study  ;  for,  as  it  was  the  last  to  be  covered  by  the 
growing  glacier,  so  it  was  also  the  first  to  be  relieved  when 
the  great  ice-sheet  melted.  It  probably  supported  an  in- 
dependent mer-de-glace  both  before  the  advance  and  after 
the  retreat  of  the  greater  northern  ice-sea,  which  in  the  in- 
terval of  time  overflowed  it ;  and  to  the  agency  of  this  local 
Appalachian  mer-de-glace  both  the  sculpturing  of  its  hills 
and  the  drift-filling  of  its  valleys  may  in  the  main  be  re- 
ferred. 

Its  greatest  average  height  is  in  the  southeastern  portion, 
where  the  Allegheny  river  takes  its  rise  ;  and  it  is  split  in- 
to two  unequal  areas  by  the  deep  valley  through  which 
the  Erie  E.  R.  passes  (the  larger  area  lying  to  the  south  of 
that  valley)  which  receives  the  drainage  of  streams  coming 
in  both  from  the  north  and  from  the  south. 

§  632.  I  have  discovered  no  evidences  that  the  great  North- 
ern ice,  so  far  as  its  Drift  bearing  part  was  concerned,  ever 


ICE  MOVEMENTS.  III.  379 

passed  over  this  highland.     Indeed  ample  evidence  to  the 
contrary  exists  in  the  following  facts  : 

1.  No  northern  Drift  is  observed  to  the  south  of  it ;  nor 
in  any  of  the  streams  which  rise  upon  its  southerly  slope  ; 
but  large   quantities  of  foreign  detritus  have  been  swept 
around  to  the  east  into  the  north  branch  Susquehanna  water- 
ways.    Similar  drift  deposits  are  also  piled  up  in  immense 
quantities  all  around  its  northern  slope  and  fill  the  water- 
ways of  the  upper  Allegheny  and  its  western  branches. 

2.  No  northern  Drift,  as  far  as  I  have  observed  or  am 
informed,  can  be  seen  in  the  upper  reaches  of  the  streams 
falling  north  from  its  southerly  rim.     Such  Drift  has  in- 
deed intruded  into  it,  through  low  spots  in  its  northerly 
rim,  and  has  descended  the  southerly  flowing  streams  as 
far  as  the  east  and  west  Erie  R.  R.  valley  before  mentioned. 
But  this  valley  is  practically  the  limit  of  the  Drift.     The 
ice  current  which  bore  it  appears  to  have  been  met  here  by 
ice-currents  from  the  south. 

It  is  plain  to  be  seen  from  the  lithology  of  the  Drift  alone, 
that  in  this  valley  two  ice  streams  encountered,  joined  and 
flowed  out  together  towards  the  west.  The  upper  branch 
valleys  of  the  Allegheny  river  in  Potter  and  McKean  coun- 
ties are  excavated  largely  in  measures  lying  beneath  the 
Pottsville  conglomerate  (No.  XII),  viz.,  in  the  Mauch 
Chunk  (Umbral,  XL)  Pocono  (Vespertine,  X)  and  Catskill 
(IX)  formations  ;  and  the  conspicuous  red  sands  and  shales 
of  these  formations  are  plainly  traceable  along  the  valleys 
of  the  north-flowing  streams  and  on  the  river  flats  as  far 
as  Olean  and  Allegany,  where  they  mingle  with  the  North- 
ern Drift  swept  down  the  opposing  streams  from  the  north. 
Now,  as  there  is  no  red  rock  in  the  northern  branch  valleys 
and  no  northern  detritus  in  the  southern  branch  valleys, — 
as  every  feature  in  the  main  valley  shows  the  movement  of 
a  glacier  toward  the  west, — as  every  feature  in  the  Allegheny 
valley  south  of  Olean  shows  an  ice  movement  toward  the 
north, — and  as  every  feature  in  the  northern  branch  vall- 
eys shows  an  ice  flow  toward  the  south, — it  follows  that  the 
northern  ice-flow,  southward,  met  a  sou  them  ice-flow,  north- 
ward, and  both  moved  westward  side  by  side. 


380  III.      EEPOET  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

§  633.  But  although  the  Drift-bearing  portion  of  the 
northern  ice  sheet  may  not  have  passed  over  this  summit 
land,  nevertheless  the  sculpturing  of  its  surface  and  the 
character  of  the  streams  falling  from  it  toward  the  south 
make  it  almost  certain  that  at  one  time  the  upper  non- Drift 
bearing  clear  ice  did  flow  over  it.  This  seemingly  paradox- 
ical statement  needs  explanation. 

§  634.  I  intimated  in  Chapter  XXX  my  belief  that  ice 
flows  in  different  currents,  at  various  horizons,  with  un- 
equal velocities  and  in  divergent  lines,  dependent  upon 
circumstances  controlling  its  movements.  To  illustrate  : 

Suppose  the  surface  of  the  front  of  the  Northern  Mer-de- 
Glace  to  have  been  2600  feet  above  ocean,  and  the  land  ele- 
vations in  northern  Pennsylvania  to  have  been  the  same 
then  as  now.  If  the  average  height  of  the  Chautauqua 
basin  highland  summit  was  at  2500',  then  the  100  feet  of 
ice  which  overtopped  that  summit  would  have  no  impedi- 
ment to  its  southward  flow  at  any  point  along  the  whole 
front  of  the  glacier ;  no  inducement  to  turn  either  to  the 
right  or  to  the  left  except  as  it  might  be  slightly  influenced 
by  the  draft  of  side  currents  in  the  general  mass. 

The  next  stratum  of  500  feet  (from  2500'  down  to  2000') 
would  strike  the  headland  and  must  either  rise  up  and  go 
over  it  or  split  and  pass  around  it.  Of  course  it  would  not 
ascend  so  long  as  it  had  free  passage  sideways. 

The  next  500  feet,  (from  2000'  down  to  1500')  encountered 
a  broader  and  still  more  preventive  barrier,  along  which  it 
would  necessarily  be  compelled  to  flow,  and  could  do  so, 
since  a  free  exit  at  that  level  (1500')  existed  towards  the 
east ;  while  in  northwestern  Pennsylvania  and  Ohio  there 
were  probably  only  a  few  isolated  knobs  higher  than  1500'. 

But  the  next  500  feet  (from  1500'  down  to  1000')  was 
checked  in  many  places  ;  and  now  moreover  ice  moved  upon 
rock  instead  of  ice  upon  ice  as  was  the  case  with  the  ice 
strata  above.  But  still  this  stratum  also  had  many  avenues 
of  escape  to  the  south  even  at  a  level  of  1000',  as  may  be 
seen  on  Plate  2,  bis. 

Considering  now  the  ice  from  1000'  down  to  750',  it  is 
probable  that  its  lower  strata  met  an  unbroken  mural  ob- 


ICE  MOVEMENTS.  III.  381 

struction  along  its  front  which  it  could  not  pass  around  to 
the  right  or  to  the  left,  but  must  either  scale  or  breach  to 
make  any  further  progress  southward. 

From  the  750'  level  down  to  the  bottoms  of  Lakes  Erie 
and  Ontario  the  ice  must  have  lain  in  a  closed  trough,  and 
could  have  had  no  possible  outlet  to  the  south  without  as- 
cending a  barrier  which  at  the  present  day  is  nowhere 
breached  to  a  level  less  than  500  feet  above  the  bottom  of 
Lake  Erie  and  950  feet  above  the  bottom  of  Lake  Ontario.* 

§  635.  Obviously,  then,  both  in  central  Ohio  and  in  cen- 
tral New  York,  the  ice-sheet  would  have  had  (with  an  em- 
pirically adopted  surface  level  of  2600')  unobstructed  flow 
for  its  upper  1600  feet ;  but  on  the  Chautauqua  basin  sum- 
mit, only  for  its  uppermost  100  feet.  The  strongest  and 
most  rapid  currents  would,  therefore,  be  where  the  greatest 
volume  found  freest  movement,  and  the  broad,  unobstructed 
upper  strata  would  undoubtedly  have  a  more  rapid  motion 
than  those  at  a  lower  level,  because  these,  impinging  upon 
the  barrier  divide,  would  be  deflected  along  its  face  if  they 
could  not  ascend  to  pass  over  its  crest. 

The  free  movement  which  the  upper  zones  of  the  glacier 
had  in  central  Ohio  would  increase  the  velocity  of  its  cur- 
rents there,  thus  somewhat  concaving  its  upper  surface  and 
necessarily  inviting  all  the  other  currents  in  that  direction  ; 
while  the  same  thing  would  happen  to  the  east,  although 
not  to  so  noticeable  a  degree,  because  the  overflow  through 
central  New  York  would  not  be  so  wide  and  free. 

§  636.  While  these  upper  currents  were  thus  flowing 
freely  by  east  and  west  movements  towards  the  south,,  the 
lower  ice  in  the  deep  old  valleys  would  be  moving  more 
slowly  in  quite  different  directions,  impelled  by  the  weight }, 
of  the  upper  ice,  aided  by  the  drainage  water  beneath,  and 
directed  by  the  trend  of  the  gorges  from  which  they  could 
not  escape. 

Thus,  after  a  southwestern  outlet  for  the  lower  strata  of 

*The  breach  in  Trumbull  county,  O,  is  936'  above  tide  ;  that  in  Summit  968'; 
that  in  Medina  county  909  ;  that  in  Wyandot  county  910' ;  that  in  Auglaize 
county,  near  the  Indiana  State  line,  940'  ;  that  in  Allen  county,  Indiana,  near 
Fort  Wayne,  790'. 


382  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

ice  and  the  under  ice  currents  of  water  had  been  established 
through  the  Maumee  and  Wabash  valleys  (with  their  pres- 
ent low  divide  of  about  800')  the  Lake  Erie  ice-core  would 
slowly  advance  south westwardly  along  the  face  of  the  great 
divide,  while  the  upper  and  freer  ice  would  pass  over  the 
crest  in  a  southerly  direction  across  the  lower  level  high- 
lands of  Ohio.  The  melting  of  its  base  would  keep  the 
glacier  always  at  work  upon  the  rocks  beneath  ;  its  pressure 
toward  the  south  would  keep  it  constantly  grinding  along  the 
face  of  the  escarpment  in  front  of  it  as  it  moved  southwest- 
wardly,  and  the  result  would  be  the  production  of  a  some- 
what abrupt  and  sharp  cut  northern  face  to  the  Pennsyl- 
vania divide.  This  feature  of  its  form  has,  in  fact,  been 
reproduced  in  detail,  but  on  a  smaller  scale,  in  many  places 
in  southwestern  New  York  and  northwestern  Pennsylvania, 
along  the  larger  streams  which  run  approximately  parallel 
with  the  lake  shore.* 

§  637.  We  may  form  some  idea  of  the  trend  of  these  ice 
currents  by  studying  the  topography  which  they  have 
carved  out,  and  noting  the  geographical  positions  and  phy- 
sical characteristics  of  the  principal  lines  of  northern  drift 
deposits  ;  but  it  seems  fairly  questionable  whether  these 
deposits  necessarily  represent  the  lowest  southern  reach  of 
the  continental  glacier.  Let  us  examine  this  question. 

§  638.  The  first  piece  of  Drift  that  left  the  northern  high- 
lands had  of  course  a  point  of  departure,  a  time  of  starting, 
and  a  certain  average  rate  of  speed  for  its  journey. 

It  could  not  start  until  the  ice  which  bore  it  had  accumu- 
lated to  a  certain  height  over  it,  and  commenced  to  move  ; 
and*  this  movement  implies  the  advance,  also,  of  all  the  ice 
in  front  of  it,  which  of  course  contained  no  Drift. 

If  it  commenced  its  journey  200  miles  north  of  the  glacier 
front,  then  200  miles  of  clear  ice  free  from  this  kind  of  de- 
tritus must  pass  on  to  the  south  in  advance  of  it.  Its  move- 

[*  It  must  not  be  overlooked,  however,  that  aerial  erosion,  in  the  absence  of 
glacial  action,  would  accomplish  the  same  result,  seeing  that  the  dip  of  the 
rocks  constituting  the  great  divide  is  universally  towards  the  south,  so  that  their 
basset  edges  face  northward ;  and  consequently,  the  northern  escarpment  (if 
so  irregular  a  country  can  be  said  to  have  one,)  should  be  steep,  whether  ever 
touched  by  ice  or  not — J.  P.  L.[ 


ICE  MOVEMENTS.  III.  383 

ment  was  slow,  and  the  possible  distance  it  could  travel 
would  be  measured  by  the  time  allotted  to  its  journey. 
Suppose  it  advanced  at  the  rate  of  one  foot  per  day ;  it 
would  then  consume  3000  years  in  traveling  207  miles.  It 
may  have  journeyed  that  distance,  or  it  may  have  traveled 
farther  ;  it  may  have  moved  faster  or  slower,  we  do  not 
know  ;  but  in  any  case,  there  would  seem  to  have  been  time 
enough  for  great  modifications  of  climate  to  have  taken 
place  between  the  inauguration  of  the  ice  age  (which  must 
have  been  long  before  the  Drift  commenced  its  journey) 
and  the  moment  when  this  first  emigrant  of  foreign  rock 
plunged  into  some  crevasse  along  the  Pennsylvania  divide, 
or  melted  out  of  the  southern  ice  front  of  the  glacier. 

The  advance  sheet  of  clear  ice  formed  during  the  period 
of  snow,  neve  and  ice  accumulation,  and  during  the  suc- 
ceeding period  of  intensest  cold,  may  have  spread  many 
miles  to  the  south,  and  then  been  cut  back  again  many  miles 
by  an  amelioration  of  climate,  before  the  Drift-bearing  bot- 
tom ice  reached  the  glacier's  front. 

This  hypothesis  is  suggested,  however,  merely  as  furnish- 
ing a  possible  explanation  of  some  of  the  traces  of  ice  action 
apparently  discoverable  beyond  the  southern  limits  of  these 
northern  Drifts. 

Other  causes  might  have  had,  and  no  doubt  did  have, 
an  important  influence  in  limiting  the  Drift- deposits  to  cer- 
tain areas. 

§  639.  If  these  ideas  regarding  the  movement  of  ice  be 
correct  it  would  naturally  follow  that  the  upper  ice -cur- 
rents, those  which  reached  the  farthest  south,  would  con- 
tain but  little,  if  any,  Drift.  For,  by  the  constant  under- 
waste  of  ice  the  debris  which  it  received  and  bore  from  the 
Canadian  hills  would  drop  lower  and  lower  as  it  crossed  the 
lake  basin  ;  and  the  upper  ices,  formed  from  atmospheric 
accumulations  and  carried  forward  by  more  rapid  currents 
near  the  surface,  would  pile  up  above  it. 

The  glacier  north  of  the  barrier- divide  and  below  its  crest 
was  moving  in  a  southwesterly  direction  and  struggling  to 
overtop  the  summit ;  while  to  the  south,  in  many  places, 
there  was  a  natural  slope  to  the  rock  surface  which  induced 


384  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOH1ST  F.  CARLL. 

an  accelerated  movement  in  the  ice  passing  over  it.  Cre- 
vasses resulted,  and  into  these  the  northern  debris  was  free- 
ly poured.  Such  primary  deposits  have  been  greatly  modi- 
fied both  in  position  and  structure  by  the  various  agencies 
which  have  wrought  upon  them  during  succeeding  ages. 

The  pre-glacial  divide  being  as  we  have  viewed  it,  a  broad 
and  deeply  trenched  plateau,  certainly  from  30  to  60  miles 
wide,  the  ice-movement  was  again  checked  when  it  reached 
the  southerly  rim  of  the  summit  basins,  and  here  other 
crevasses  occurred  and  more  debris  was  dropped. 

§  640.  All  the  low  areas  of  these  basins  are  covered  by 
mixed  Drift-beds,  some  of  the  valleys  being  filled  to  the 
known  depth  of  450  feet.  These  were  the  grand  glacial 
dumping  grounds  ;  and  it  would  seem  that  the  currents 
bearing  northern  material  never  passed  beyond  them,  ex- 
cept as  local  glaciers  creeping  down  through  the  several 
gaps  already  referred  to.  Here,  during  the  immeasurably 
long  ages  of  the  recession  period  (when  the  ice-sheet  had 
become  so  much  reduced  in  thickness  and  power  that  it 
was  scarcely  able  to  overtop  the  hills  in  front  of  it)  the 
southern  lip  of  the  great  glacier  lay  and  wasted,  and  its 
heterogeneous  burden  of  foreign  and  local  rocks  was  pro- 
miscuously dropped,  to  be  re- worked  and  re-arranged  by 
the  peculiar  agencies  which  control  the  movements  of  ice 
and  water  in  such  situations  as  these. 

§  641.  If  we  pause  here  to  consider  the  location  and  sur- 
roundings of  the  Summit  basins,  we  shall  see  that  they 
must  have  been,  during  the  final  retreat  of  the  Continental 
glacier,  under  climatic  and  dynamic  influences  quite  differ- 
ent from  those  obtaining  in  districts  both  to  the  north  and 
to  the  south  of  them. 

If  the  ice-front  was  cut  back  by  a  gradual  amelioration  of 
climate,  the  southerly  slope  of  the  divide  would  first  be 
sensibly  affected  by  it ;  and  here  the  ice-sheet,  (being  com- 
paratively thin  and  thoroughly  under-drained,)  would  waste 
rapidly  from  the  higher  grounds,  leaving  only  local  glaciers, 
urged  down  the  valleys  from  the  mer-de-glace  behind  or 
north  of  them. 

But  when  the  ice-front  had  been  melted  back  to  the  south- 


ICE  MOVEMENTS.  III.  385 

erly  crest  of  the  Chautauqua  divide,  the  battle  between  the 
elements  of  heat  and  cold  commenced  in  earnest.  North 
of  the  barrier,  the  ice-king  had  massed  his  forces ;  lake  Erie 
basin  was  full  of  ice,  and  all  the  reserves  of  the  north  were 
freely  moving  down  into  it.  As  fast  as  one  skirmish  line 
on  the  summit  wras  repulsed,  another  was  thrown  forward ; 
and  thus  alternately  advancing  and  retreating  the  contest 
raged  for  ages  before  the  invading  ice  was  forced  back  and 
permanently  confined  within  the  limits  of  the  present  lake 
basin. 

§  642.  During  this  period  the  surface  of  the  summit 
basins  was  wrought  upon  by  almost  every  possible  com- 
bination of  the  powers  of  ice  and  water.  In  some  of  the 
valleys  there  were  local  glaciers ;  in  others,  inter -glac'lal 
lakes.  There  were  temporary  ice-dams  and  ice-gorges  ;  in- 
termittent deliveries  of  ice  and  water,  now  in  one  place, 
now  in  another,  as  accidental  obstruction  or  free  delivery 
might  direct  ;*  and  as  a  natural  result,  we  now  find  almost 

*Avalanches  of  rock  and  earth,  snow  and  ice  from  mountain  heights  fre- 
quently produce  notable  changes  in  the  forms  and  deposits  of  the  valley  beds 
below.  Damming  the  gorges  they  produce  temporary  and  even  permanent 
lakes.  When  such  a  dam  bursts,  either  from  the  pressure  of  the  water  behind 
or  after  being  weakened  by  the  long  erosion  of  its  outlet,  deluges  and  debacles 
desolate  the  lower  reaches  of  the  valley  for  many  miles ;  load  it  with  a  new 
covering  of  sand  and  gravel ;  and  oblige  the  stream  to  adopt  a  new  water  bed. 

A  memorable  instance,  occurring  in  1818,  is  described  by  Escher  von  der 
Linth.  The  Val  de  Bagnes  is  a  rocky  glen  among  the  Alps,  thirty  or  forty 
miles  long  opening  into  the  valley  of  the  Rhone  at  Martigny.  Its  cliffs  are 
covered  with  perpetual  snow.  At  its  head  are  two  glaciers,  out  of  which 
flows  the  little  river  Dranse,  in  a  gorge  between  Mont  Pleureur  (the  mourn- 
ful) and  Mont  Mauvoisin  (the  bad  neighbor),  which  has  often  been  blocked 
by  huge  masses  of  ice  falling  from  the  end  of  the  glaciers.  By  April,  1818, 
the  accumulated  obstruction  of  previous  years  had  grown  into  a  cone  a  hun- 
dred feet  high,  behind  which  the  Dranse  began  to  form  a  lake.  The  cantonal 
authorities  employed  M.  Venetz  to  engineer  a  tunnel  through  this  conical  dam 
of  ice.  The  tunnel  was  begun  May  10th  and  completed  June  13th.  The  lake 
already  contained  800,000,000  cubic  feet  of  water  In  three  days  the  new  out- 
let reduced  the  amount  to  530,000,000 ;  but  the  swift  outrush  melted  the  ice, 
widened  the  mouth  of  the  tunnel,  hurled  forward  masses  of  the  adjoining 
glacier,  and  reduced  the  length  of  the  floor  of  the  tunnel  from  600  to  only  8 
feet.  The  torrent  then  attacked  the  dgbris  at  the  foot  of  Mont  Mauvoisin, 
against  which  the  ice  cone  had  rested,  thus  undermining  the  glacier  itself, 
and  making  a  water-way  between  it  and  the  mountain  wall. 

At  this  moment  the  ice  gave  way,  and  the  whole  of  the  lake  water  precipi- 
tated itself  in  30  minutes  past  the  gorge  down  into  the  Val  de  Bagnes,  carrv- 

25  III. 


386  III.       EEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

every  variety  of  Drift-deposits  within  their  limits— -finely 
levigated  clays,  pure  sand-beds,  beaches  of  lake  shingle, 
coarse  gravel  banks,  windrows  of  huge  metamorphic  bowl- 
ders, and  sometimes  all  of  these  promiscuously  intermixed 
within  a  limited  area. 

§  643.  A  similar  disorder  saems  to  characterize  the  deep 
deposits  also,  as  shown  by  oil  wells  ;  in  one  locality  quick- 
sand predominates,  in  another  clay,  in  another  gravel ;  or 
they  may  all  three  be  present,  or  repeated  in  layers  in  the 
same  well ;  but  they  do  not  lie,  as  far  as  I  have  been  able 
to  discover  in  any  regular  order  of  superposition.* 

§  644.  The  Chautauqua  basin  appears  to  have  been  filled 
with  bodies  of  ice  and  water  possessing  all  the  powers  and 
motions  requisite  for  lake- making.  Under  their  actions 
streams  were  cut  together,  valleys  were  broadened,  bowl- 
shaped  basins  were  formed  among  the  hills  ;  and  had  not 
the  processes  been  interrupted,  either  by  the  failure  of  ice 

ing  off  the  Mauvoisin  bridge,  90  feet  above  the  ordinary  level  of  the  Dranse. 
It  deluged  the  wider  part  of  the  Val  below,  poured  through  the  next  gorge, 
deluged  the  next  open  reach,  and  so  on  through  a  succession  of  basins  and 
gorges  it  swept  its  burden  of  rocks  and  ice,  forest  timber,  houses,  barns,  and 
the  very  soil  itself,  forward  to  Le  Chable.  Here  the  half  solid  deluge  became 
banked  between  the  piers  of  a  stone  bridge  50  feet  above  the  level  of  the 
Dranse,  and  attacked  the  slope  on  top  of  which  stood  the  church  and  houses 
of  the  town.  Fortunately  the  bridge  gave  way,  and  only  the  houses  at  its 
two  ends  went  down  with  the  debacle.  The  wide  reach  of  valley  from  here 
to  St.  Branchier  was  then  overwhelmed ;  houses,  roads,  fields  and  crops,  or- 
chards loaded  with  fruit  disappeared  in  a  moment  into  the  long  narrows  be- 
tween St.  Branchier  and  Martigny,  and  were  strewn  on  the  plain  of  the 
Rhone  Le  Burg  and  Martigny  were  both  ravaged,  and  the  wreck  of  the 
spent  flo  >d  was  scattered  along  thirty  miles  to  the  Lake  of  Geneva. 

M.  Escher  calculated  that  300,000  cubic  feet  of  water  issued  from  the  barrier 
per  second,  at  the  rate  of  20  miles  an  hour.  The  Rhine  at  Basle  delivers  only 
60,000  It  reached  the  lake  of  Geneva  (45  miles)  in  tfi  hours. 

A  new  coat  of  alluvion,  several  feet  thick,  was  spread  over  all  the  lower 
Val  de  Bagnes,  but  so  irregularly  that  roads  had  to  be  cut  through  it  as  if 
through  snow-drifts.  Isolated  masses  of  rock  were  carried  great  distances, 
one  of  which,  hurled  from  the  gorge  on  the  plain  below,  measured  12'  by  12' 
and  27  paces  around.  S.ill  larger  masses  showed  that  they  had  been  moved. 
The  Dranse  adopted,  after  some  fluctuations,  a  wholly  new  water  bed ;  and 
the  whole  plain  of  Martigny  was  changed  in  feature  by  the  outspread  of  a 
layer  of  detritus.  (See  Gallery  of  Nature,  by  Rev  Thos.  Milner,  p.  412. 

*  Bowlders  of  metamorphic  rock,  and  blocks  of  sandstone  and  conglomer- 
ate are  quite  frequently  encountered,  and  trees  a  foot  or  more  in  diameter  have 
.been  reported,  at  a  depth  of  over  100  feet. 


ICE  MOVEMENTS.  III.  387 

supply  or  by  the  wearing  down  of  its  outlet  (which  re- 
sulted in  drainage)  it  is  evident  that  the  agencies  at  work 
would  have  here  formed  a  lake,  in  the  same  manner  as  they 
formed  one  in  the  Lake  Erie  basin,  where,  owing  to  lower 
levels  and  a  more  favorable  situation  they  continued  to 
operate  for  a  much  longer  period.  * 

As  the  glaciers  did  not  withdraw  from  the  basins  with  a 
steady  and  uniform  rate  of  retrogression,  but  evacuated 
only  after  long  periods  of  alternating  advances  and  retreats, 
moraines  were  formed  in  many  places;  and  hence,  when  the 
ice  disappeared,  chains  of  small  lakes  stretched  all  along 
the  broad  valleys  north  of  the  outlets.  Periodical  freshets, 
bringing  down  the  waters  accumulating  from  broad  sur- 
faces, eventually  cut  channels  through  the  moraine  bar- 
riers /  and  thus,  one  after  another,  the  lakelets  were  drained  ; 
but  their  old  outlines  may  be  traced  in  many  places  by  the 
terraces  and  beaches  which  surrounded  them,  and  by  the 
lacustrine  deposits  left  in  their  beds. 

§  645.  It  is  often  remarked  as  a  curious  fact  that  nearly  all 
our  small  lakes  lie  on  summits  at  the  heads  of  streams.  But 
this  should  excite  no  surprise.  They  remain  there  as  lakes 
to-day,  because  they  have  always  received  the  drainage  of 
but  small  areas,  and  have  not  been  seriously  affected  by  an- 
nual freshets  ;  consequently  their  outlets  cut  down  very 
slowly,  and  they  have  not  yet  had  time  to  drain.  We  see 
evidences,  however,  in  nearly  all  of  them,  that  the  water 
once  stood  at  a  higher  level  than  it  stands  at  present. 

Chautauqua  lake  may  be  taken  as  an  illustration  ;  it  has 

[*This  must  not  be  taken  in  so  large  a  sense  as  to  make  the  whole  valley 
now  occupied  by  Lake  Erie  the  work  of  the  Canadian  mer-de-glace,  for  the 
whole  discussion  of  the  subject  of  this  chapter  presupposes  a  topography  ex- 
isting before  the  ice  age  essentially  the  same  with  that  which  exists  at  present. 
To  suppose  Lake  Erie  excavated  by  ice,  is  to  ignore  all  the  knowledge  we  have 
acquired  by  forty  years  of  study  of  the  Appalachian  topography  from  Canada 
to  Alabama.  The  preglacial  existence  of  the  present  basin  of  Lake  Erie  is  as 
necessary  to  the  argument  of  this  chapter  as  the  preglacial  existence  of  the1 
great  Chautauqua  barrier  overlooking  it. 

It  must  also  be  remembered  that  an  eminent  difference  in  the  two  cases  re- 
ferred to  in  the  paragraph  above  arises  from  the  fact  that  the  Lake  Erie  basin 
valley  has  a  special  and  remarkable  barrier  to  the  north  formed  by  the  up- 
lifted outcrop  of  the  Niagara  Limestone,  &c.,  through  whi  -h  the  Niagara  out- 
let has  been  cut.  J.  P.  L.] 


388  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

cut  down  an  outlet  through  about  50  feet  of  stratified  rock. 
This  has  of  course  reduced  its  surface  level  by  that  much. 
What  proportion  of  this  cut  was  made  during  the  ice  age 
cannot  be  known  ;  but  the  proofs  are  patent  that  a  higher 
water  level  than  the  present  has  been  maintained  in  com- 
paratively recent  times  ;  and  probably  the  lake  area  would 
not  have  been  nearly  as  large  as  it  now  is,  if,  like  other 
summit  lakes,  its  outlet  had  been  through  Drift  instead  of 
through  solid  rock. 

§  646.  The  southeastern  limit  of  northern  drift  is  very 
closely  defined  by  the  Allegheny  river  valley  in  north- 
western Pennsylvania ;  and  the  locations  of  the  most  no- 
ticeable deposits,  when  viewed  in  connection  with  the  trends 
of  the  channels  through  wrhich  the  materials  must  have  been 
transported,  and  by  the  sculpturing  of  the  hills  surrounding 
the  mountain  fiords  in  which  they  lie,  furnish  good  evi- 
dence in  support  of  the  hypothesis  advanced  in  relation  to 
the  methods  of  ice  movement  on  the  divide. 

From  Olean  in  New  York  to  Smith's  Ferry  on  the  Ohio 
line  the  Allegheny-Ohio  river  bed  is  strewn  with  rounded 
water- worn  pebbles  of  northern  rock;  but  the  percentage 
and  quality  of  foreign  material  varies  quite  materially  at 
different  points. 

All  the  tributaries  which  come  into  the  valley  from  a 
northerly  direction,  and  which  rise  in  or  near  the  summit 
basins,  are  also  strewn  with  Drift ;  while  those  flowing  from 
opposite  directions  contain  only  such  local  deposits  near 
their  mouths  as  have  been  forced  up  stream,  sometimes  a 
mile  or  more,  by  the  Drift-bearing  glacier  of  the  Allegheny. 

§  647.  At  Olean,  heavy  bodies  of  ice  were  forced  in  from 
the  Genesee  valley,*  and  meeting  the  ice-current  of  the  Alle- 

*The  manner  in  which  ice-currents  were  forced  into  the  summit  basins 
through  every  available  opening,  may  be  profitably  studied  along  the  westerly 
branches  of  the  Genesee  River.  All  the  larger  ones  which  take  their  rise  on 
the  divide  are  flowing  in  broad  and  deeply  cut  valleys  which  connect  directly 
with  others  leading  to  the  Allegheny  River.  It  may  be  noticed  on  the  county 
maps  that  the  highways  frequently  follow  these  streams,  passing  over  the 
ridge  from  one  river  to  the  other.  So  continuous  are  these  valleys,  and  so 
similar  are  the  cuts  at  the  summits  to  some  of  the  passes  below,  that  the  or- 
dinary traveler  might  pass  over  the  road  a  number  of  times  and  not  be  able 
to  tell  where  the  waters  divide.  The  cuts  are  generally  characterized  by  pre- 


EDDY  HILLS.  III.  389 

gheny,  an  ice-eddy  resulted,  which  cut  out  a  broad  basin, 
and  deposited  heavy  masses  of  Drift,  partly  foreign,  partly 
local,  which,  however,  was  not  carried  southward  far  up  the 
Allegheny  river  valley. 

This  action  of  the  two  currents  is  made  manifest  both  by 
the  shape  of  the  basin,  and  by  the  position  of  the  eddy- 
lulls. 

Across  the  river,  southwest  of  the  village,  a  very  peculiar 
hill  may  be  noticed,  rising  from  the  plain  with  a  straight- 
cut  side  of  almost  bare  rock,  in  appearance  like  the  side  of 
a  truncated  pyramid.  This  sharp-cut  hill- face,  so  in  con- 
trast with  the  smoothly  rounded  slopes  forming  the  other 
sides  of  the  amphitheatre,  would  be  hard  of  explanation 
on  any  theory  of  sub-aerial  erosion  ;  but  as  a  result  of  ice- 
action  it  speaks  for  itself.  Here  was  an  elbow  in  the  an- 
cient-river ;  and  when  the  ice  came  in  south  west  wardly 
from  the  Genesee  valley,  it  struck  the  current  coming  down 
the  Allegheny  almost  at  right  angles  and  held  it  against  this 
point  until  its  projecting  nose  had  been  ground  squarely  off. 

A  little  north  of  this,  the  eddying  ice  has  cut  another 
point  into  a  detached,  elongated  pyramidal  hill,  and  formed 
several  conical  drift-hills  in  the  valley  basin. 

§  648.  Between  Carrollton  and  Great  Valley  the  river 
has  a  northerly  trend,  and  here  the  undercurrents  of  ad- 
vancing ice  were  met  and  held  in  check  by  another  import- 
ant stream  pouring  down  Great  Valley.  The  upper  strata  of 
ice  found  outlets  in  several  places  across  the  hill-tops  to  the 
west.  One  of  these  waste- weirs  between  Great  Valley  and 
Little  Valley  was  occupied  long  enough  to  cut  down 

cipitous  banks,  a  rather  narrow  stretch  of  creek-bottom,  and  an  appearance 
of  but  little  depth  of  Drift.  They  alsa  usually  occur  at  or  near  a  considerable 
curve  in  the  valley. 

The  Genesee  valley  is  so  located  as  to  have  received  the  full  force  of  the  ice- 
thrust,  and  its  headwater  streams  rise  upon  the  highest  portion  of  the  divide, 
through  which  no  important  southern  outlets  of  overflow  have  been  cut;  hence 
the  forward  movement  of  the  glacier  was  impeded  and  the  ice  crept  through 
and  deepened  every  possible  avenue  leading  into  the  Chautauqua  basin. 

The  summit  divides  of  several  streams  inside  the  limits  of  the  Chautauqua 
basin  have  been  cut  down  in  a  similar  manner,  and  they  all  clearly  show  the 
action  of  ice.  for  they  are  in  situations  where  water  alone  could  never  have 
accomplished  such  results. 


390  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

through  a  considerable  thickness  of  rock,  stopping  at  the 
Salamanca  Conglomerate,  a  massive  layer  forty  feet  or 
more  in  thickness.  When  the  ice-sheet  wasted  and  the 
valley  channel  became  able  to  carry  the  ice  and  water  at 
lower  levels,  this  outlet  was  abandoned  ;  and  now,  the  ice- 
cover  having  been  removed,  a  mysterious  "Rock  City" 
remains  perched  upon  a  narrow  ridge — the  admiration  and 
wonder  of  thousands  of  visitors,  the  subject  of  many  art- 
istic sketches  and  pen-pictures,  and  the  suggestive  prompter, 
to  many  strange  and  some  ridiculous  hypotheses  as  to  its 
origin. 

South  of  Salamanca  other  cuts,  but  not  so  deep,  were 
made,  as  attested  by  elongated  Mil-tops  trending  in  an 
east  and  west  direction  and  by  deep  bowl-shaped  basins 
(now  occupied  by  insignificant  streams)  into  which  the 
overflow  has  poured. 

§  649.  At  the  mouth  of  Great  Valley  there  are  thick  gravel- 
beds  particularly  deserving  of  notice,  because  they  are  com- 
posed of  a  large  percentage  of  the  hardest  northern  rocks, 
and  the  pebbles  are  unusually  spheroidal,  as  if  shaped  by 
attrition  under  a  rotary  motion — facts  which  well  support 
the  other  evidences  of  an  ice-eddy  at  this  point.* 

§  650.  At  Steamburg  the  old  valleys  were  wrought  into 
a  broad  basin ;  an  elliptical,  truncated  hill  was  cut  off 
from  the  point  in  the  elbow  of  the  ancient  river  (see  Plate 
XL),  and  a  number  of  conical  ice-eddy  Drift-hills  were  left 
upon  the  flats. 

§  651.  At  Jamestown  the  old  Chautauqua  outlet  was 
filled  up  and  a  group  of  Drift-hills  were  stretched  across 
the  valley,  completely  closing  the  old  outlet  and  forcing 
the  pent-up  waters  over  a  point  of  fixed  rock  through 
which  they  have  since  cut  a  narrow  channel  50  feet  or 
more  in  depth. 

§  652.  At  Warren  the  eastern  and  southern  walls  of  the 

*  Not  that  ice  itself  is  capable  of  grinding  blocks  into  a  spherical  shape, 
for  the  characteristics  of  ice-d6bris  are  1.  angularity,  2.  striation,  3.  commix- 
ture, and  4.  range  of  distribution.  But,  where  glacial-water-streams  can 
manage  drift  pieces  in  confined  places,  they  are  capable  of  rounding  these  in 
a  remarkably  symmetrical  manner. 


ICE  EROSION.  III.  391 

basin  at  the  intersection  of  the  Conewango  with  the  Alle- 
gheny are  faced  with  gravel-batiks,  from  which  I  have  made 
a  collection  of  pebbles  which  can  scarcely  be  distinguished 
from  a  similar  one  picked  up  from  the  strand  in  Dunkirk 
harbor. 

As  before  explained,  the  ice-sheet  here  had  a  southward 
draft,  one  current  having  an  exit  through  the  Barnesville 
cut  into  Tionesta  creek.  This  carried  the  Drift  up  to  Stone- 
ham  and  Clarendon,  about  three  miles  from  the  Allegheny, 
where  it  forms  the  present  divide,  at  an  elevation  of  about 
1400  feet  above  ocean,  and  underlies  the  area  covered  by 
Cranberry  swamp.  More  or  less  of  it  was  also  carried 
forward  by  the  glacier  into  Tionesta  creek.  In  no  other 
locality  has  it  penetrated  so  far  to  the  south-east  of  the 
Allegheny  valley  as  it  has  here.  But  the  reason  for  this  is 
obvious — no  other  stream  had  an  outlet  cut  at  the  south, 
consequently  the  ice-flow  elsewhere  was  checked  and 
thrown  back  upon  the  main  stream. 

§  653.  Brohenstraw,  west  of  Irvineton  in  Warren  county, 
flows  in  an  east  and  west  trough  occupied  by  the  Allegheny 
river  at  its  east  end.  This  trough  naturally  received  the 
full  force  of  a  number  of  ice  currents  from  the  north.  Near 
Spring  creek,  just  where  such  a  result  might  be  expected, 
the  erosion  has  been  very  extensive.  An  isolated  pyramidal 
hill  has  been  carved  out  from  one  of  the  old  points,  and  the 
valley  after  being  widened  and  deepened  was  studded  with 
gravel  hills. 

§  654.  Opposite  Garland  a  stream  comes  in  from  the  south 
(Grouse  or  Mullingar  run)  through  which  the  ice-current 
pressed,  effected  a  connection  with  Caldwell  creek,  cut  down 
the  divide  to  within  150  feet  of  the  Garland  level,  and 
poured  an  immense  amount  of  mixed  debris  into  the  Oil 
creek  basin.  It  landed  in  the  elbow  where  the  old  stream 
turned  north,  about  three  quarters  of  a  mile  from  the  present 
outlet  of  the  basin,  the  high  hills  on  all  the  outer  circle  of 
the  curve  preventing  further  progress.  Here  it  filled  in  to 
the  depth  of  300  feet  or  more,  when  a  new  passage  was 
opened  leading  more  directly  toward  the  present  outlet. 
But  this  delivery  from  the  Brokenstraw  was  only  a  temper-' 


392  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS. 

ary  waste  weir  to  the  Chautauqua  basin,  and  was  aban- 
doned as  soon  as  the  Allegheny  channel  at  Irvineton  be- 
came sufficiently  enlarged  to  accommodate  all  the  out-flow. 

§  655.  At  Irmneton  the  evidences  of  a  long  continued  ice- 
gorge  while  the  Allegheny  was  being  prepared  to  convey 
the  additional  amount  of  drainage  now  forced  into  it,  are 
plainly  seen  in  the  wide  cut  basin,  in  the  topography  of  the 
hills  and  in  the  character  and  positions  of  the  drifts 

§  656.  At  Oil  City  and  Franklin  other  accessions  of 
northern  material  were  brought  into  the  Allegheny  valley. 
The  contour  map  at  the  junction  of  French  creek  with  the 
Allegheny  (Plate  XVIII)  shows  how  the  confluent  glaciers 
have  sculptured  (or  completed  the  sculpturing  of)  the 
topography  there. 

The  Big  &Lndy  is  the  last  northern  inlet  of  importance  to 
the  Allegheny.  Below  this  little  foreign  matter  has  come 
into  the  valley  until  the  Big  Beaver  river  is  reached,  where, 
as  may  be  noticed  on  Plate  No.  2  bis,  a  short  and  quite  di- 
rect avenue  is  opened  up  into  a  large  area  of  low  levels. 
As  might  be  expected,  therefore,  here  lie  immense  deposits 
of  Drift,  largely  composed  of  northern  rocks  transported 
and  dropped  by  the  local  glacier  which  must  have  crept 
down  the  Beaver  valley  and  occupied  it  for  ages.* 

§  657.  Reviewing  the  above  facts,  we  see  that  the  most 
conspicuous  Drift-deposits  lie  precisely  where  they  should 
be  looked  for  if  the  ice  movement  were  such  as  we  have 
supposed  it  to  have  been,  and  the  relative  surface  levels 
the  same  as  at  present. 

The  glacial  cuts  in  every  instance  have  been  made  in 
curves  in  the  hill-barriers  where  the  full  force  of  the  ice- 
shove  was  concentrated  ;  and,  through  those  which  were  ex- 

*I  strongly  suspect  that  Big  Beaver  river  is  a  glacial  enlargement  of  a 
small  ancient  stream,  formed  in  the  same  manner  as  th'ise  found  in  the  sum- 
mit basins ;  and  that  anterior  to  the  Ice  Age  the  Shenango  and  other  head- 
water streams  of  the  Beaver,  including  the  Connoquenessing,  delivered  north- 
wardly through  the  Mahoning  and  Grand  rivers  into  Lake  Erie  basin :  but 
having  had  no  opportunity  of  verifying  my  suspicions  I  can  say  nothing  lur- 
ther  about  it.  The  tendency  of  all  the  summit  streams  to  flow  southwesterly 
down  the  dip  for  a  certain  distance  and  then  to  swing  round  toward  the  north 
into  the  lake  basin,  is  witnessed  by  the  course  of  the  Cuyahoga,  and  also  by 
many  of  the  modern  streams  along  the  lake  slope. 


RIVER  TERRACES.  III.  393 

cavated  to  a  sufficient  depth  to  remain  as  permanent  south- 
ern outlets  immense  burdens  of  northern  debris  have  been 
delivered,  which  the  transporting  glacier  threw  off  at  every 
sharp  bend  in  the  valley  and  on  every  nose  where  two  con- 
fluent ice-streams  met.  For  the  sculpturing  of  the  summit 
basins,  the  excavation  of  the  glacial  cuts,  and  the  trans- 
portation of  the  gravel  beds,  we  seem  therefore  to  have  a 
very  plausible  explanation. 

§  658.  The  origin  of  river  terraces  has  been  a  much 
mooted  question,  which  I  do  not  feel  prepared  yet  to  dis- 
cuss. There  are  peculiar  difficulties  in  it  to  be  encountered. 
While  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  passage  of  a  valley 
glacier  of  great  depth  along  the  Shenango  and  Beaver  risers 
through  the  westernmost  tier  of  counties,  to  within  a  few 
miles  of  the  Ohio  river,*  and  probably  into  the  Ohio  river 
valley,  blocking  up  for  a  time  the  outflow  of  the  Allegheny 
and  Monongahela  water  basins,  there  is  entire  absence  of 
evidence  in  the  shape  of  striae  and  erratics  that  a  glacier 
ever  tilled  the  lower  Allegheny  river  valley;  and  a  complete 
lack  of  northern  Drift  in  the  Monongahela  river  valley,  f 

If  the  Allegheny  and  Mononaghela  valleys  before  and  dur- 
ing the  retreat  of  the  northern  ice  may  be  conceived  as  filled 
with  two  local  ice  streams,  moving  independently  along  those 
deep  and  narrow  water  ways,  meeting  at  Pittsburgh  and  pass- 
ing together  (as  one)  northwestward  down  the  Ohio  river  val- 
ley, cutting  off  in  their  deflection  the  point  of  highland  and 
leaving  the  conical  hill:}:  in  Allegheny  city,  now  support- 

*See  for  the  proofs  Prof.  White's  Reports  of  Progress  Q,  QQ. 

f  See  Prof.  Stevenson's  Reports  of  Progress  K,  KK ;  Mr.  W.  S.  Platt's 
Report  of  Progress  in  Armstrong  county,  H.5  ;  and  Mr.  H.  M.  Chance's  Re- 
ports of  Progress  in  northern  Butler  and  Clarion  counties,  V,  VV. 

[t  The  explanation  of  such  conical  hills  is  still  difficult.  In  my  Manual  of 
Coal  and  its  Topography  (1856)  page  153,  I  give  a  sketch  which  I  made  some 
years  previously,  of  two  such  eddy-hills  projecting  into  the  valley  of  Pine 
creek  in  L/ycoming  county ;  of  another  similarly  half-attached  to  the  sides  of 
gaps  in  the  Conglomerate  of  Broad  Top  in  Huntingdon  county  ;  and  of  two 
others  connected  at  gaps  in  the  Bald  Eagle  mountain  near  Wilkes-Barre  and 
Jersey  Shore.  Another  occurs  in  a  gap  in  Nittany  mountain,  southeast  of 
Bellefonte  in  Clinton  county. 

No  trace  of  ice-action  has  been  remarked  in  the  neighborhood  of  these  eddy- 
hills.  They  are  evidently  features  of  the  general  topography  of  the  country, 
due  entirely  to  water-erosion  in  some  one  of  its  forms.  Those  in  Pine  Creek 


394  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

ing  the  soldiers'  monument — the  combined  stream  would 
encounter  the  Beaver  river  glacier  in  Beaver  county. 

Over  or  through  such  ice  in  the  Allegheny  and  Mononga- 
hela  valleys  all  the  drainage  of  their  water  basins  must  pass, 
a  drainage  increased  in  volume  in  the  melting  epoch  at  the 
close  of  the  ice-age.  The  thin  upper  edges  of  the  ice-core 
in  each  valley  would  melt  first  and  more  rapidly,  the  lateral 
vales  would  become  water  pools,  and  violent  water  currents 
would  set  down  the  main  valley  between  the  ice  and  the 
hill  sides  whenever  the  under-ice  water-way  became  ob- 
structed. Thus  the  materials  thrown  off  sideways  by  the 
valley  ice  would  be  rearranged,  at  various  heights  of  200, 
300  or  400  feet  above  the  valley  bed,  into  terraces  or  flood- 
plains,  like  those  which  now  cling  to  the  hill  sides. 

The  quality  and  structural  arrangement  of  the  materials 
composing  the  terraces  and  gravel  banks,  and  the  positions 
of  the  deposits,  when  studied  in  connection  with  the  sur- 
rounding topography,  seem  to  me  to  favor  the  view  that 
they  were  formed  by  agencies  immediately  connected  with 
the  Ice  Age,  rather  than  that  they  are  remnants  of  the  silts 
of  valleys  which  have  been  filled  up  three  or  four  hundred 
feet  and  re-excavated  since  that  time. 

§  659.  The  distribution  of  erratic  bowlders  remains  to  be 
referred  to.  The  highest  point  at  which  I  have  myself  seen 
large  blocks  of  metamorphic  rocks  is  on  the  table-land  east 

valley  have  their  summits — one  of  them  on  a  level  with  an  upper  (horizontal) 
stratum  of  massive  sandstone— the  other  (in  front  of  it)  on  a  level  with  a  lower 
stratum  of  massive  sandstone,  as  shown  in  the  section  accompany  ing  t  lie  sketch. 
These  two  hills  seem  to  me  to  show  progress  of  erosion ;  the  one  in  front  be- 
ing about  half  as  high  as  the  one  behind  it ;  and  the  higher  one  being  two 
thirds  as  high  as  the  tableland,  which  is  about  1000'  above  the  bed  of  the  val- 
ley. Their  attachment  to  one  another  and  to  the  tableland,  their  shape,  and 
respective  positions  lead  me  to  believe  now  that  they  were  cut  off  from 
the  point  of  tableland  and  from  each  other  by  accidental  differences  of  hard- 
ness in  the  horizontal  formations  which  ran  through  all  three ;  and  that  their 
quasi  c  mical  shape  has  resulted  from  the  quaquaversal  drainage  of  vertically 
descending  rain  water,  and  from  the  universal  surface-erosion  of  frosts  and 
winds;  as  in  the  case  of  all  " pulpit  rocks." 

The  other  eddy-hills  mentioned  above  are  by  no  means  so  easily  explained. 
But  the  Allegheny  City  hill  may  have  owed  its  birth  to  ordinary  river  erosira 
when  the  bed  of  the  Allegheny  river  was  303  feet  higher  than  at  present,  and 
may  have  been  receiving  its  present  shape  by  the  agency  of  river  freshets  from 
that  time  to  the  present J.  P.L  ] 


ERRATICS.  III.  395 

of  Chautauqua  lake,  at  an  elevation  of  about  1750  feet  above 
ocean;  the  lowest  (that  is,  the  lowest  broad  table-land 
summit),  in  Conneaut  township,  Crawford  county,  near  the 
Penn'a-Ohio  State  line,  at  an  elevation  of  about  1070  feet. 
All  along  the  divide  and  at  any  elevation  between  these 
points  they  may  be  found. 

It  has  been  asserted  by  some  that  they  always  lie  upon 
the  surface,  and  that  therefore  they  must  have  been  dropped 
by  icebergs.  That  they  do  lie  upon  the  surface  in  many 
notable  instances  will  not  be  disputed  ;  but  it  is  well  proven 
now  that  they  also  frequently  lie  imbedded  in  Drift  many 
feet  below  the  surface.  Both  on  the  surface  and  in  the 
gravel-banks  they  have  a  vertical  range  of  several  hundred 
feet.  The  iceberg  theory,  therefore,  in  every  aspect  in 
which  it  may  be  viewed,  seems  to  me  to  be  entirely  inad- 
missible ;  we  must  look  for  some  other  agency.  For — 

1.  The  proportion  wliich  the  erratics  bear  to  the  whole 
mass  of  glacial  debris,  if  it  could  be  calculated,  would  be 
found  to  be  very  small  indeed ;  consequently,  where  deep 
deposits  of  Drift  occur  they  might  be  so  sparsely  scattered 
through  it  as  to  attract  but  little  attention,  while  in  exposed 
situations  and  in  a  thin   Drift-sheet  they  would  be  very 
prominent. 

2.  We  must  consider  also  the  peculiar  manner  in  which 
they  have  been  distributed.     Where  comparatively  undis- 
turbed along  the  divide  they  are  almost  always  found  in 
colonies,  stretching  in  long  and  narrow  lines,  while  for  miles 
on  either  side  of  these  rock-windrows  scarcely  a  bowlder  can 
be  seen.     , 

Probably  they  lie  in  a  similar  manner  where  buried  in 
the  Drift,  and  this  would  account  for  their  absence  in  some 
gravel-banks  and  their  presence  in  others. 

They  appear  to  have  been  thrown  off  from  the  glacier 
moving  south-westerly  through  Lake  Erie  into  crevasses 
along  the  summit.  Those  which  came  last,  after  the  great 
ice-flow  was  checked  and  the  ice  commenced  to  melt  back 
into  the  lake  basin,  remain  where  they  were  dropped. 
Many  of  them  were  covered  at  first  to  a  considerable  depth 
by  glacial  debris  ;  but  subsequent  denudation  has  laid  some 


396  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

of  them  bare,  and  others  which  lay  within  the  range  of 
frost-action  have  been  brought  up  by  degrees  until  all  such 
now  lie  on  the  surface. 

The  tendency  of  large  blocks  of  local  rock  to  congregate 
along  certain  lines  is  finely  illustrated  in  many  places  in  the 
summit  basins,  where  the  sandstones  and  conglomerates 
have  been  taken  up  by  the  ice  and  dropped  in  reefs,  exactly 
as  the  azoic  bowlders  have  been  dropped  ;  and  in  some  cases 
near  the  northern  front  of  the  divide  the  two  kinds  of  rocks 
are  promiscuously  intermixed. 

3.  Another  suggestive  fact  is  that  northern  bowlders  are 
only  found  in  situations  where  a  free  movement  of  glacial 
ice  has  been  possible.  Thus  at  Cuba,  N.  Y.,  in  the  draft 
between  the  Genesee  river  and  the  Allegheny,  they  may  be 
seen  at  an  elevation  of  about  1600  feet,  while  at  Wellsville 
on  the  Genesee,  100  feet  lower,  not  a  large  bowlder  can  be 
found.  In  fact  all  the  valley  Drifts  here  are  composed 
mostly  of  local  materials,  the  ice  sheet  in  this  stream  hav- 
ing been  held  in  check  by  the  unbroken  divide  at  the  south, 
so  that  the  Drift-bearing  currents  of  the  north  could  not  in- 
trude ;  or  if  they  did  force  up  this  far,  the  older  Drifts  were 
afterwards  covered  up  by  new  debris  brought  from  the 
south  when  the  glacier  receded. 

The  conclusion  that  northern  bowlders  and  Drift  have 
been  landed  in  noticeable  quantities  on  the  great  divide,  and 
south  of  it  only  along  certain  lines  where  the  glaciers  were 
not  permanently  checked  but  had  a  free  southerly  draft  and 
delivery,  is  further  sustained  by  the  evidences  of  ice  action 
in  Tioga  and  Bradford  counties  over  which  part  of  the  east- 
ern lobe  of  the  mer-de-glace  passed  after  breaching  the  sum- 
mit at  the  head  of  Seneca  Lake.  No  attempt  has  yet  been 
made  to  interpret  the  Drift  phenomena  of  this  region  by  the 
hypothesis  of  ice  movement  advocated  in  this  chapter  ;  but 
it  is  evident  from  the  facts  given  in  Mr.  Sherwood's  Report 
G,  that  the  foot-prints  of  the  same  mechanical  agencies 
which  fashioned  the  summit  basins  lying  further  west  are 
clearly  traceable  here.  The  present  main  trunk  of  Pine 
creek,  in  the  southwestern  part  of  Tioga  county,  looks  like 
a  glacial  cut  similar  to  those  which  I  have  been  describing, 


ICE  MOVEMENTS.  III.  397 

and  it  is  certain  that  in  preglacial  times  upper  Pine  creek 
at  least  contributed  its  waters  to  Tioga  river  through  the 
old  valleys  of  Marsh  creek  and  Crooked  river,  now  cut  off 
from  Pine  creek  by  a  long  moraine.  See  Report  G,  p.  53, 
&c.,  and  accompanying  maps. 

It  is  highly  probable  that  the  Drift  deposits  of  the  North 
Branch  Susquehanna  basin  when  they  come  to  be  studied  in 
detail  will  shed  much  light  upon  structural  questions  relat- 
ing to  the  smaller  lakes  of  the  State  of  New  York  ;  for  up 
along  through  the  deep  valleys  in  which  these  lakes  lie  came 
forward  one  section  of  the  Drift-bearing  northern  ice  sheet. 


398  III.        KEPOET  OF  PROGRESS.      JOIIX  F.  CARLL. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

Well  Records  referred  to  on  the  plates  accompanying  this 
Report,  as  published  in  Appendix  III. 

Boyd  Hill Plate     VII,  Fig.  31. 

Economy,  No.  2, IV,             7. 

Summit, V,           15. 

Mahan,      V,           17. 

Graff,  Bennett  &  C.>., j  yjj'  32'  j 

Pine  Creek,  No.  1, VII,  34. 

Midland,  No.  1, VII,  35. 

(V  21.  ) 

Cherry  Run [  vn  ^   j 

Ortowold.No.1, |^J;  £| 

Kohrer,  No.  2, VI,  29. 

Strotman, VI.  26. 

Hains, VI,  22. 

IronB.idge, .  IV,  8. 

Cove  Hollow, IV,  9. 

John  Smith,       IV,    2  &  10. 

Boyce,  Rawle  &  Co., IV,  3. 

Raymond,  No.  6,      IV,  4. 

Reliance,     IV,  12. 

§  660.  Boyd's  Hill  Well     (Plate  VI L  Fig.  31.) 

1876-77. 

This  well  is  located  in  the  city  of  Pittsburgh,  on  a  plat- 
form overlooking  the  Pittsburgh  steel  works,  near  the  north 
bank  of  the  Monongahela  river.  A  full  history  of  it  has 
already  been  given  by  Prof.  Lesley,  in  Appendix  E  of  Re- 
port of  Progress  L. 

Below  we  give  a  catalogue  and  description  of  the  speci- 
mens of  sand-pumpings,  which  were  regularly  preserved  in 
glass  jars  as  the  boring  progressed,  by  Dr.  Hunter,  who 
was  one  of  the  owners  of  the  well,  and  personally  superin- 
tended the  drilling  of  it. 


BOYD'S  HILL  WELL.  III.  399 

These  specimens  were  carefully  taken  from  the  original 
jars,  brought  to  Pleasantville,  put  in  separate  bottles,  num- 
bered and  arranged  in  order  as  below,  for  preservation  in 
the  State  museum,  the  owners  of  the  well  having  kindly 
made  a  donation  of  them  to  the  Survey  for  that  purpose. 

The  thickness  of  rock  assigned  to  each  specimen  is  that 
which  was  marked  on  the  jar.  As  some  of  the  intervals 
are  large,  of  course  it  cannot  now  be  positively  known 
whether  the  single  specimen  preserved  faithfully  represents 
the  character  of  the  whole  vertical  distance  covered  by  it 
or  not. 

It  is  fair  to  presume,  however,  that  the  specimens  were 
taken  carefully,  as  they  were  intended  to  exhibit  a  correct 
representation  of  the  entire  stratification  when  packed  in 
the  jars  (one  layer  on  top  of  another)  as  the  sediment  came 
from  the  well,  and  that  therefore  no  material  change  in  the 
constitution  of  the  rocks  was  overlooked  and  no  important 
specimen  omitted  by  Dr.  Hunter. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet, 852 

S%oC    Conductor,       8  to       8  =     844 

1.  Shale,  fawn  color  and  blue,  with  layers  of  micaceous 

sandstone, 78  to  86  =  766 

2.  Coal 8  to  94  =  758 

3.  Shale,  sandy,  dark,  bits  of  lime, 211  to  305  =  547 

4.  SS.,  light  grey,  micaceous,  hard, 45  to  330  =  502 

5.  Shale,  fawn  and  lead  c  >lor,  some  lime, 132  to  482  =  370 

SS.,  as  given  in  record,  but  no  specimens  preserved, 

(see  note  2), 100  to   582  =     270 

6.  SS.,  light  reddish  grey,  with  white  specks,  soft,  fine 

grained,         .    5  to  587  =  265 

7 .  Shale,  slate,  and  brownish  sand-shells ;  trace  of  lime,  25  to  612  =  240 

8.  Coal, 3  to  615  =  237 

9.  Slate,  hard  and  firm 6  to  621  =  231 

10.  Sand-sh  ells,  grey  and  sandy-shale,  dark,  21  to   642=      210 

11 .  Shale,  bluish-grey,  slaty,  micaceous,  containing  frag- 

ments of  limestone.     (Ferrif  rous  limestone,)     .  15  to   657=      195 

12.  Shale,  slaty,  dove  color,  soft,          18  to    675  =      177 

13 A.  i  Shale,  yellow-brown  and  black,  micaceous,  gritty, 

13 B.  $     soft;  Top  (13  A)  darker  than  bottom,     .   .   .   .   .  20  to   695  =      157 
(13'  A  and  13  B'  same  as  above,  but  washed.) 

14 .  Shale,  slaty,  micaceous,  dark, 25  to   720  =      132 

15.  Coal, 9  to    729  =       123 

16  A.  SS.,  very  fine,  grey,     .   .   .   .  \ 

16  B    SS.,  very  fine,  white,  .   .   .    .   [ 60  to    789  =  -f   63 

16  C.  SS.,  fine,  hard,  iron  stained,.  ) 


400  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Spec  tfo. 

17 .  Slate,  nearly  black,      90  to   879  ==  —   27 

18.  Limestone,  very  dark, 10  to   889  =  —   37 

19 .  SS. ,  white,  very  fine,  and  intermixed  with  particles  of 

grey  limestone,      25  to   914  =  —   62 

19^(  |  Same,  coarse  and  fine,  separated  and  washed. 

20  A.  SS.,  white,  very  fine  and  hard.    The  specimen  is  iron 

stained,      80  to   994  =  —  142 

20  B  j  (Sifted  spec.,  lower  part  of  rock.) 

21.  Slaty-shale,  dark, 82  to  1076  =  —  224 

22.  SS.,  gray,  with  white  specks,  fine  hard,  micaceous, 

no  pebbles,  (sifted  No.  22  fine,  No.  22'  coarse.)     .  110  to  1186  =  —  334 

23.  Slate,  micaceous,  gritty, 154  to  1340  =  —  488 

24.  SS.,light-gray,ftne,flaky,(c  >al  probably  accidentally 

dropt  in,)  (sifted  No.  24  fine,  No.  24'  coarse.)  35  to  1375  =  —  523 

25 .  Slaty  shale,  dark,  micaceous,  with  gray  sand  shells,    30  to  1405  =  —  553 

26A.  Slate,  shaly,  lead  color, J  185  to  1590  =  -  738 

26  B.  SS.,  greenish  and  red,  fine,  flaky,   .    .    > 

27 .  SS.,  olive-gray,  soft,  some  pebbles,  probably  in  layers 

of  white  sand,  (sifted,  No.  27  fine,  No.  27'  coarse.)  110  to  1700  —  —  848 

28A.  SS.,  gray,  fine, ^ 

28 B.  SS.,  gray-green,  red,  some  slate,  .       £ 40  to  1740  =  — 888 

28 C.  SS.,  gray-green,  red,  some  slate,  .   .  5 
29A.  Slate,  shaly,  dark,  .    .   j 

29B.  Slate,  shaly,  dark,  .   .   £ 20  to  1760  =  —  908 

29 C.  Slate,  shaly,  dark,  .   .  5 

30A.  SS.,  very  fine  and  hard,  gray,  (specimens  oxydized  \  )  ,r  .    1775  __  903 
(Sifted  No.  SOB  fine,  No.  30B'  coarse.  '    $ 

31.  Shaly,  gray  and  red,  with  thin  sand  shells 70  to  1845  =  —  993 

32.  Slaty  shale,  with  gray  sand  shells,  traces  of  red,     .    15  to  1860  =  —1008 

33.  Slate,  with  thin  white  shells,     40  to  1900  =  —1048 

34 .  Slate,  common, 38  to  1938  =  —1086 

35.  Slaty,  shale,  red,  green  and  blue,  shelly, 12  to  1950  — —1098 

36.  SS..  light-gray,  fine,  hard,  flaky, 15  to  1965  = —1113 

(Sifted  No.  36  fine,  No.  36'  coarse.) 

37.  Shells  red  green  gray  with  black  slate, 45  to  2010  = —1158 

38.  SS.,  olive-gray,  very  fine,  flowery,  flaky, 25  to  2035  =  —1183 

(Sifted  No.  3S  fine,  No.  38'  coarse.) 

39 .  SS.,  white,  very  line,  flaky,  some  slate,  ("  3d  SS  ,")    15  to  2050  —  —1198 

40.  Slate,  shaly,  with  sand  shells, 40  to  2090  =  —1238 

41A.  SS,veryfine, I  27  to  2117  - -1265 

41  B.  Slate  with  close  thin  layers  of  fine  SS.,     .  .1   ' 

(Sifted  No.  41B  fine,  No.  41B'  coarse.) 

42.  SS.,  olive-gray,  very  fine  and  hard,  flakey,  mixed 

with  slate,  as  if  in  thin  layers, .    21  to  2138  =  —1286 

(Sifted  No.  42  fine,  No.  42'  coarse.) 

43.  Slate,  common,  soft,    .       .   .    .  100  to  2233  —  —1386 

Slate,  common,  soft  to  bottom, 122  to  2380  —  — 1508 


ECONOMY  WELL  NO.  2.  III.  401 

NOTE  1.—  Specimens  marked  A  B  and  C  are  from  the  top,  middle  and  bot- 
tom of  the  Ia3rers  of  sediment  as  originally  packed  in  the  large  jars.  The  du- 
plicate numbers  have  been  washed  and  sifted,  so  that  the  true  character  of  the 
rock  may  be  more  plainly  exhibited. 

NOTE  No.  2.  The  1'ollovviug  quotations  from  Dr.  Hunter's  letter  to  the  State 
Geologist,  dated  March  20,  1876,  110  doubt  gives  a  more  correct  description  of 
the  strata  occupying  the  interval  between  specimens  Nos.  5  and  6,  than  the 
record  which  was  made  after  the  well  was  completed,  for  then  the  facts  were 
fresh  in  mind.  He  says  : 

"We  hive  passed  through  86  feet  of  sedimentary  friable  rock,  at  the  bot- 
tom of  which  we  found  fresh  water  ;  then  8  ft.  of  coal  ;  [the  coal  is  included 
in  the  £6  ft.,  according  to  the  jars,]  followed  by  211  feet  of  rock  similar  to  the 
80  ft.  ;  then  45  ft.  of  close  white  sandstone,  hard  ;  then  132  ft.  of  slate,  to  u<jh  • 
then  25  ft.  of  sandrock,  more  porous  than  the  45  ft.  rock,  with  a  little  show  of 
gas  ;  then  36  feet  of  slate  ;  then  3  ft.  of  coal,  which  is  some  546  ft.  below  the 
surface  or  starting  point.  We  are  now  in  slate  at  600  ft." 

Taking  this  version  and  commencing  with  the  45  ft.  sandstone,  we  get  the 
following  section  : 

Specimen  No.    4,  .   .       .   .      Sandstone,     .......    45'  to  SSO7 

Specimen  No.   5  ......     Shale,      .........  132'  to  482' 

(  Sandstone,     .......    25'  to  507' 


(     ?  ...........    36'  to  £82' 

Specimen  No.    6,  .....      Sandstone,     .......      5'  to  587' 

Specimen  No.   7,  .....      Shale  or  slate,  ......    25'  to  612' 

("  Wo  are  now  in  slate  at  600  ft.") 
Specimen  No.    8,  .....      Coal,     ..........      3'  to  615' 

Specimen  No.    9,  .....      Slate,       .........      6'  to  621' 

Specimen  No.  10,  .....      Sand  shells,  .......    21'  to  642' 

SpecimenNo.il,  .....      Shale.     Limestone,  .   .    .    15'  to  657' 

As  specimen  No.  11  contains  traces  of  the  Ferriferous  limestone,  the  bed 
of  coal  reported  above  appears  to  represent  the  Kittanning  Upper  coal. 


Economy  Well  No.  9..     (Plate  IV,  Fig.  7.) 

July,  1877. 

§  661 .  Located  near  the  cutlery  works  of  the  Economy  Society,  at  Beavor 
Falls,  Beaver  county.    Authority  J.  W.  Ramsey,  well  manager. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet, 730 

Nos\  Conductor,      3  to       3  =  727 

1.  S3.,  yellow-white,   .   .    .   -. 53  to     56=  674 

2.  Coal,  bright, 1±  to      57=  673 

3.  S3.,  shaly,  lino  hard,     10  to     67  =  663 

4.  Slate,  clark,     25  j  4Q  ^ 

5.  Slate,  dark,      15  > 

0 .  Calcareous  iron  ore, 2  to    109  =  621 

7.  Shale,  muddy,  light-gray, 10  to    119  =  611 

8.  Shale,  slaty,  dark-gray, 50  to    169  =  561 

2G  III. 


402  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 


Spec.  Nos. 

9.  SS.,  white  with  black  seams, ^  £  41  to    210:=       520 

10.  SS.,  white  with  slate  and  pebbles, 6> 

11 .  Shale,  dark  and  muddy, 40  to    250  =       480 

12.  SS.,  shelly,  tine,  micaceous,  gray  and  brown,     ...    24  to    274=       456 

13.  SS.,  fine,  gray,  with  white  specks, 5^ 

14.  Mud  rock, 1  (  26  to   300  =       430 

15.  SS.,  gray,  white  specks,  no  pebbles, 20  J 

16.  Shale,  slaty,  and  shells  of  micaceous  SS., 40  to    340  =       390 

17.  SS.,  fine,  greenish  gray  and  red, 5  £  15  to   355  =       375 

18.  SS.,  fine,  gray  and  fawn  color,  soft, 10  ) 

19.  Slate,  shale  and  mud  rock,     75  to   430  =       300 

20.  SS.,  flaggy,  fine,  hard, 40  to   470  =       260 

21 .  Shaly  slate,  with  fine  sand, 12  to   482  =       248 

22.  SS.,  fine,  hard,  greenish  and  brown, 5  to    487  =       243 

23.  Slaty  shale,      ^  *  43  to    530  =       200 

24 .  Slaty  shale,  somewhat  sandy, 18  S 

25 .  Sandy  shale  and  mud, 7  to    537  =       193 

26.  SS.,  gray,  pebbly, 3  *  23  to    560  =       170 

27.  SS.,  light  gray,  fine, 20  S 

28.  Slate,  with  sand  from  above, •••....    10  to   570  —       160 

29.  SS.,  yellowish,  very  tine, 20  to    590  =       140 

30.  Slate,  with  sand  from  above, 5  to   595  =       135 

31.  SS.,  gray,  very  fine,    .   .       15  to   610  =       120 

32.  Sandy  slate,  dark, 4  to   614=       116 

33.  SS.,  fine,  nearly  white, 80  to   694  =  +    36 

34.  Sandy  slate,  dark,      10^ 

35.  Sandy  slate  (specimen  lost), 82  [  235  to   929  =  —  199 

36 .  Slate, 143  J 

37 .  Red  clay  and  dark  slate, 15  to   944  =  —  214 

38.  Slate, 116  to  1060  =  —  330 

39.  SS.,  light-gray  mica,  with  white  specks, 30  to  1090  =  —  360 

40.  Slate  and  mud  rock, ^  1 400  to  1490  =  - 760 

41 .  Slate  and  mud  rock, 40  > 

42.  SS.,  gray,  very  fine,  flaky, 100  to  1590  =  —  860 

43.  Slate,  (42  B  mud  at  1580,) 10  to  1600  =  —  870 

44.  SS.,  whitish,  very  tine,  hard,  flaky, 10  to  1610  =  —  880 

45.  Shale,  muddy, 55  to  1665  =  —  935 

46 .  Slaty  shale,  sandy, 40  to  1705  =  —  975 

47 .  Mud  rock, 75  to  1780  =  —1050 

48.  SS.,  flaggy,  very  fine,  micaceous, 30  to  1810  = —1080 

49.  Mud  rock, 10  to  1820  = —1090 

50.  Sandy  slate,  very  fine  sand, 15  \ 

51.  Sandy  slate,  very  fine  sand, 20V  85  to  1905  =  — 1 175 

52.  Slate  and  fine  sand  shells, 50  ) 

53.  Black  slaty  shale,  5  per  ct.  of  carbonaceous  matter,  35  to  1940  =  —1210 

54.  SS.,  very  fine,  flaky, 10  to  1950  =  —1220 

55'  Slate' 5°  |  150  to  2100-  -1370 

56.  Slate, 100$ 

58.  Mud  rock, 50  to  2150  =  —1420 

'    '        50j  180  to  2330  =  -1600 

59.  Slate, 130  i 


ECONOMY  WELL  NO.  2.  III.  403 

Work  on  the  above  well  was  commenced  in  May,  1876, 
and  suspended  about  the  1st  of  July,  1877.  At  the  solici- 
tation of  Prof.  White  who  was  making  his  survey  of  Beaver 
county  in  1876,  Mr.  J.  W.  Ramsey,  superintendent  of  the 
drilling  operations  of  the  Economy  society,  carefully  pre- 
served samples  of  the  sand  pumpings  wherever  a  change  in 
the  composition  of  the  rocks  occurred.  These  specimens, 
59  in  number,  were  designed  for  the  museum  of  the  Survey 
and  were  consequently  added  to  my  collection  at  Pleasant- 
ville,  so  that  all  oil  well  specimens  might  be  grouped  to- 
gether. The  above  record  is  made  from  the  specimens  and 
labels  on  the  bottles,  and  is  no  doubt  as  specific  as  a  record 
can  be  made  under  the  circumstances,  where  a  single  speci- 
men represents  so  great  an  interval  as  some  of  these  do. 

In  January,  .1877,  I  visited  the  well,  then  1300  feet  deep 
and  from  Mr.  Ramsey  received  the  following  particulars 
relating  to  it. 

A  twelve  inch  hole  was  drilled  to  the  depth  of  557  feet 
and  cased  with  8£  inch  pipe  (inside  diameter)  which  effect- 
ually shut  off  all  fresh  water.  A  little  gas  was  noticed  at 
430  feet.  From  the  large  casing  an  8  inch  hole  was  sunk 
to  820'  at  which  depth  5f  inch  casing  was  put  in  to  shut  out 
a  heavy  vein  of  salt  water  encountered  in  the  80  foot  sand 
at  614  feet.  In  this  part  of  the  hole  gas  was  struck  at  517 
feet,  sufficient  in  quantity  to  fire  a  12  horse  boiler,  and  this 
was  still  further  increased  by  the  gas  coming  in  with  the 
salt  water  at  614  feet.  After  inserting  the  inside  casing  the 
gas  and  salt  water  flowed  constantly  over  the  well  mouth 
between  the  two  casings.  The  water  was  very  salt,  yield- 
ing on  a  rough  test  made  by  Mr.  Ramsey,  seventeen  ounces 
of  salt  to  one  gallon  of  water. 

From  820  feet  a  5£  inch  hole,  was  drilled  on  down.  At 
1060  feet  another  salt  water  vein  was  struck  but  as  it  was 
small  and  could  be  kept  down  by  the  sand  pump,  drilling 
was  not  interrupted,  until  at  1280  feet  another  supply  was 
tapped  which  proved  to  be  so  copious  that  it  could  not  be 
exhausted  and  therefore  at  1300  feet  it  was  thought  advis- 
able to  stop  drilling,  pull  the  casing  and  ream  down  the  8 
inch  hole  to  that  point.  After  this  was  done  and  the  5f 


404  III.   HEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.  JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

inch  casing  inserted  to  1300  feet,  no  further  trouble  was  ex- 
perienced from  water,  and  the  hole  was  then  drilled  on 
down  to  2330  feet,  where,  meeting  with  neither  gas  nor  oil, 
the  work  stopped. 

Summit  Well.     (Plate  V,  Fig.  15.} 

1876. 

§  662.  Near  Great  Belt  city  or  Summit,  Summit  township,  Butler  county. 
Authority,  Kirk  &  Dill  worth. 
Well  mouth  above  ocean,  in  feet, 1326 

?, 120  to    120=     1200 

Coal,      120  =      1206 

?, 205  to    325  =      1001 

Coal,      325  =      1001 

?, 223  to    54S  =       778 

Limestone,     14  to    562  =  +  764 

?, 778  to  1310  =  —    14 

Large  flow  of  gas, —       1310  =  —    14 

?, .  152  to  1492  =  —  166 

SS., "2d  Sand,11 20  to  1512  =  —  186 

?, 234  to  1746  =  —  420 

SS., "Stray," 16  to  1762  =—  436 

?, 10  to  1772  =  —  446 

SS., "3d  Sand," 36  to  1H03  =  —  482 

?, 14  to  1822  =  -  496 

Mahan  Well.     (Plate  V,  Fig.  17.) 

1875. 

§  063.  On  Mahan  farm,  Middlesex  township,  Butler  county.    Hart&Conkle, 
owners.     Authority,  F.  A.  Conkle  and  C.  E.  Hart. 
Well  mouth  above  ocean,  in  feet : 
Conductor, 12  to      12  = 

?, 63  to     75  = 

"Bluff  sand,"  followed  by?, 125  to   200  = 

Coal, 4  to    204  = 

?, 86  to   290  = 

Coal, 2  to   292  = 

Slate, 3  to   295  = 

Limestone, 20  to   315  = 

?, 85  to   400  = 

SS,     60  to   460  = 

?,  180  to    610  = 

Coal  and  coal  shales,  water  and  gas,     8  to   648  = 

?,  (cased  at  660',) 27  to   675  = 

SS.,  very  hard, 90  to   765  = 

?, 385  to  1150  = 

8S.,  shelly, 100  to  1250  = 

?, .    90  to  1340  = 


GRAFF,  BENNETT  &  CO.'S  WELL.  III.  405 

SS.,  black ;  brackish  water, 10  to  1350  = 

SS.,  fresh  water, 50  to  1400  — 

Slates 70  to  1470  = 

SS-,  black  and  loose,* 10  to  1480  = 

SS.,  grey,      50  to  1530  = 

Slate, 15  to  1545  = 

Red  Shale, 10  to  1555  = 

Slate,      10  to  1565  = 

Bowlder, 20  to  1585  = 

Slate, 38  to  1623  = 

SS.,  "corn  meal," 37  to  1660  = 

Slate, 40  to  1700  = 

SS.,  Pink  pebble, 25  to  1725  = 

?, 15  to  1740  = 

SS.,  fine  white, 15  to  1755  = 

Shales  and  slates, 30  to  1785  = 

SS.,  white  and  pebbly, 17  to  1802  = 

Slate, 28  to  1830  — 

Shales  and  sand, 10  to  1840 — 

Shales,  blood  red, 90  to  1930  = 

Tills  record  is  compiled  from  the  record  given  by  Mr. 
Conkle,  in  Report  II,  page  271,  compared  with  the  record 
given  by  Mr.  Hart,  in  Report  Q,  page  81. 

Graff,  Bennett  &Co:s  Well.    Plate  V,  Fig.  18,  and  Plate 
VII,  Fig.  32. 

June,  1878. 

§  644.  Located  on  west  side  of  the  Allegheny  river,  Tarentum,  Allegheny 
county.    Authority,  James  E.  Karns. 
Well  mouth  above  ocean,  in  feet 872 

?, 418  to    418  =       454 

SS.,  white,  coarse  "4ff  rode," 49  to   467  =       405 

Slate,  black,  .      [Brine  and  red  oil  horizon,  see  note,]      .    53  to   520=       352 

SS.,  white,  hard,  fine  "70'  rock," 75  to   595=       277 

SS.,  green,  soft,    )  f  95  to   690  =       182 

SS.,  gr^y,  hard,    }• "  Mountain  Sand,"  .   .   .   .  I    85  to   775  =         97 

SS.,  white,  hard  J  t  43  to   818  =         54 

Slate,  blue,  shelly, 10  to   828  =         44 

Slate,  red,  hard, 5  to   833  =  -(-    89 

Slate,  dark,  gritty, 128  to    C61  =  —    89 

SS.,  gray  to  white,  hard, "  1st  SS.," 199  to  1160  ==  —  28S 

Slate,  dark,  gritty,  shelly, 58  to  1218  =  —  346 

SS.,  dark  to  white,  1  (  29  to  1247  =  —  375 


SS.,  blue  to  white,    !  "0dSS"  J    40tol2G7=— 415 

SS.,  blue  to  white,    [  '  '   j    50  to  1337  =  —  465 

SS.,  blue  to  white,   )  [  25  to  1362  =  —  490 

*Mr.  Conklesays,  "  10'  SS.,  black  and  loose,  with  amber  oil  and  salt  water." 
Mr.  Hart,  60'  SS..  very  white,  amber  oil,  5  barrel  well.  Whatever  the  "  show 
of  oil "  may  have  been,  it  was  not  considered  worth  pumping,  and  the  well 
was  put  deeper  and  then  abandoned. 


406  III.         REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Slate,  dark,  gritty,  shelly, 68  to  1430  =  —  558 

SS.,  deep  red,  hard,  >                          u                 „                    <  15  to  1445  =  —  573 

SS.,  blue  to  gray,       $ '  1  35  to  1480  =  -  608 

Slate,  dark,  gritty,  shelly, 27  to  1507  =  —  635 

SS.,  light  red, 3  to  1510  =  —  638 

SS.,  black,      5  to  1515  =  —  643 

Slate,  dark, 12  to  1527  =  —  655 

SS.,  blue,  bottom  pebbly, }                                                     (  10  to  1537  =  —  665 

Slate,  black,         I              «30<  rock"                    J  5  to  1542  =-  670 

SS.,  blue  to  white,     .   .    .   [                                                 '  1  10  to  1552  =  -  680 

SS.,  red, )                                                       {  10  to  1562  =  —  690 

Slate,  pink  to  white, 18  to  1580  =  —  708 

Slate,  blue  and  shelly, 22  to  1602  =  —  730 

SS.,  bluish,  very  hard,-  .   .   .    "  Blue  Monday," 8  to  1610  =  —  738 

Slate,  black, 12  to  1622  =  —  750 

Slate,  red, 2  to  1624  =  —  752 

Slate,  gray,  shelly,     2  to  1626  —  —  744 

SS.,  gray,            2  to  1628  =  —  756 

Slate,  red  and  black  mixed, 36  to  1664  =  —  792 

SS.,  gray,            3  to  1667  =  —  795 

Slate,  red  to  blue,  shelly, ' 16  to  1683  =  —  811 

SS.,  gray  to  white, "Bowlder," 25  to  1708  =— 836 

Slate,  white, 2  to  1710  =  —  838 

SS.,  dark  to  light  gray, "Stray  3d," 12  to  1722  =  —  850 

Slate,  black,  shelly, 40  to  1762  =  —  890 

SS.,  gray,  pebbly  at  bottom,   ....   "SdSS.," 20  to  1782  =— 910 

Slate,  red  to  gray, 10  to  1792  =—920 

Slate,  gray, 28  to  1820  =  —  948 

SS  ,  gray,  loose,  pebbly, "jthSS.," 8  to  1828  =—956 

Slate,  purple  to  black,      98  to  1926  =  —1054 

Sand-shells,  gray  and  green, 7  to  1933  =  — 1061 

Slate,  gray,               25  to  1958  =  —1086 

Slate,  black,  gritty, 20  to '1978  =—1106 

Slate,  gray,  no  grit, 44  to  2022  =  —1150 

Slate,  black,  no  grit, 120  to  2142  =  —1270 

Slate,  blue,  no  grit, 30  to  2172  =  —1300 

Slate,  brown,  soft  sand  shells 20  to  2192  =  —1320 

Sand  shells,  light-green, 10  to  2202  =  —1330 

Slate,  dark,  no  grit,        25  to  2227  =  —13-55 

SS.,  gray,  flaggy,  hard, 5  to  2232  —  —1360 

Slate,  dark,  no  grit, 30  to  2262  =  —1390 

SS.,  light-gray,  coarse, 8  to  2270  =  —1398 

Slate,  dark,  soft, 14  to  2284  =  —1412 

findinos  in  well : 

1st.  Salt  water,  copious, 4°  at  454  ft. 

Mud  vein, at  451  ft. 

2d.  Salt  water,  copious,     .   .       4°  at  461  ft. 

3d.  Salt  water,  less  in  quantity, 8°  at  476  ft. 

4th.  Salt  water,  small  quantity, 14°  at  828  ft. 

Fresh  water  (brackish)  and  gas, at  1247  ft. 

1st.  Gas,  small  quantity, at  634  ft. 


PETERSON  WELL.  III.  407 

2d.  Gas,  small  quantity,  with  fresh  water, at  1247  ft. 

3d.  Gas,  strong,  flame  50'  high,     at  1287  ft. 

4th.  Gas,  small  but  oily, at  1705  ft. 

On  closing  the  well  mouth  the  gas  pressure  has  run  up 
to  130  fcs.  to  the  square  inch,  and  would  go  higher  if  not 
relieved. 

The  well  has  been  cased  at  five  different  points,  thus  en- 
abling the  testing  of  each  product  separately.  It  is  now 
cased  at  1328  feet. 

Mr.  Karns  says  in  his  letter  accompanying  the  record : 

11  You  will  observe  the  brine  marked  8°.  This  is  always 
obtained  (if  found  at  all)  between  the  40'  and  70'  rocks,  and 
with  it  comes  the  red  oil  of  this  district.  We  got  the  brine, 
but  merely  a  show  of  oil." 

"I  commenced  this  record  at  the  top  of  what  is  known  in 
this  county  as  the  40'  rock,  the  stratum  which  has  furnished 
nearly  all  the  salt  which  has  been  made  in  the  county,  al- 
though some  brine  has  been  got  in  the  70'  rock,  the  top 
member  of  the  mountain  sand  series.  The  stratification 
above  this  40'  rock  was  so  well  known  that  I  only  thought 
it  necessary  to  see  that  this  well  coincided  with  it.  En- 
closed is  a  record  of  the  Peterson  well  near  by,  which  will 
explain  it." 

Peterson  Well. 

1861. 

§  665.  Located  near  the  West  Penn'a  R.  R.  about  half  a  mile  southeast 
of  the  Graff,  Bennett  &  Co.  Well,  drilled  for  L.  Peterson  by  F.  W.  flumes 
iu  1861.  Level  of  well  mouth  100  below  G.  B.  &  Co.  well. 

Elevation  of  well  mouth  above  ocean,  in  feet, 772± 

Conductor, 50  to   50  =  722 

Sandy  flags,      25  to    75  =  697 

•  SS.,  white,  flaggy,      50  to  125  =  647 

Coal, 1  to  126  =  646 

SS.,  brown, 4  to  130  —  642 

Slate,  gray, 30  to  160  =  612 

SS.,  white,  sharp, 20  to  180  ==  592 

SS.  and  slate,  dark, 16  to  196  =  576 

Coal, 2  to  198  =  574 

Slate,  white, 26  to  224  =  548 

SS.,  white 16  to  240  =  532 

SS.,  dark,       19  to  259  =  513 


408  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Limestone, 9  to  268  =  504 

SS.  and  slate, 18  to  286  =  486 

SS.,  white, 8  to  294  =  478 

Slate,  white,      28  to  322  =  450 

Slate,  dark, 27  to  319  =  423 

Slate,  white,     13  to  362  =  410 

SS.,  dark, 3  to  365  =  407 

SS.,  white,  coarse,  sharp,  "40'  rock,"  [Brine,  see  note,]  .   .  42  to  407  =  365 

Mud  vein, —  to  407  =  365 

SS.,  dark, 23  to  430  =  342 

Slate,  white, 50  to  480  =  292 

SS.,  dark,  top  of  70' rock," 2  to  482  =  290 

"The  salt  measures  here  have  been  worked  since  about 
1832,  the  brine  coming  from  a  sandrock  about  40'  in  thick- 
ness, and  lying  about  380'  below  the  level  of  the  West 
'Penn.  R.  R.  track.  This  rock  contains  salt  water  of  4°, 
and  in  some  localities  a  pebble  stratum  below  it  yields 
brine  of  8°,  accompanied  by  oil  and  gas.  Mr.  Peterson 
sunk  a  well  here  in  1852  and  not  finding  salt  water  in  the 
usual  place  drilled  down  to  1237'  striking  fresh  water  and 
gas.  The  well  continued  to  flow  fresh  water,  and  is  still 
flowing  (June,  1878)  just  as  when  drilled.  Two  years  ago 
the  well  was  reamed  out  and  cased  at  600'  but  no  accurate 
record  could  be  had  of  it,  as  the  drillings  flowed  out  with 
the  water." 

Graff,  Bennett  &  Company^  s  well  produces  a  large  quan- 
tity of  water  which  is  ejected  with  varying  force  as  the  gas 
pressure  increases  or  intermits.  It  quickly  forms  a  deposit 
in  the  delivery  pipe,  and  every  pebble,  twig  and  blade  of 
grass  along  the  sides  of  the  ditch  dug  to  convey  the  water 
from  the  well  is  beautifully  encrusted  by  it.  A  specimen 
sent  to  Mr.  A.  S.  McCreath  for  analysis  gave  the  following 
results : 

"The  deposit  consists  of  a  thin  nodular  material,  filled 
with  a  light  brown  clay.  The  shell  after  being  tolerably  well 
separated  from  the  clay  contains : 

Carbonate  of  lime, 53.910 

Carbonate  of  magnesia, 11.351 

Carbonate  of  baryta,        8.884 

Oxide  of  iron  and  alumina, 3.640 

Insoluble  residue, .    .  19.160 


PINE  CREEK  WELL  NO  1.  III.  409 

Pine  Creek  Well  No.  1,  (Plate  VII,  Fig.  34.) 

1877? 

§  G66.  In  Pine  twp.,  Armstrong  Co.,  east  bank  of  the  Allegheny  river  and 
a  short  distance  above  the  mouth  of  Pine  creek.  Authority  Coi.  Jos.  D.  Potts, 
per  A.  B.  Howland. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet,  about 800 

Drive  pipe, 47  to     47  ==       753 

Bed,  rock,  surface  sand, 33  to     80  =       720 

Slate, 15  to     95  =       705 

Coal, 1  to     96  =       701 

SS., 150  to   246  =       554 

Slate, 5  to   251  =       549 

SS.,  strong  gas, 257  to   508  =       292 

Slate,  (cased  at  512',) 12  to   520  =       280 

Red  rock, 20  to   510  =       260 

Slate  and  shells, 35  to   575  =       225' 

Sand  shell,  oil  and  gas, 4  to   579  =       221 

Red  rock, 21  to   600  =       200 

Slate, '. 7  to   C07  =       193 

SS.,  gas, 20  to   627  =       173 

Slate  and  shells, 43  to   670  =       130 

SS.,  gas, 8  to   678  =  -f  122 

Slate  and  shells 142  to   820  =  —    20 

Red  rock, 4  to   824  =  —    24 

Slate,       6  to    830  =  —    30 

SS.,  gas, 10  to    810  =_    40 

Slate  and  shells, 10  to   850  —  —    50 

SS.,  hard,  gas,       20  to   870  ——    70 

Slate  and  thick  shells, 30  to   900  =  —  100 

SS.,  gas,  sufficient  to  fire  the  boiler, 70  to   970  =  —  170 

Slate, 20  to   990  =  —  190 

Slate  and  shells, 18  to  1008  =  —  203 

SS.,  pebble,  heavy  gas,  salt  water, 43  to  1051  = — 251 

Slate  and  shells, 39  to  1090  —  —  290 

Bedrock, 10  to  1100  =  —  300 

Slate, 5  to  1105  =  —  305 

Red  rock, 15  to  1120  =  —  320 

Slate  and  shells, 30  to  1150  —  —  350 

Red  roc7cf.nd  shells,     26  to  1176  =  —  376 

Slate  and  shell, 4  to  1180  =  —  380 

SS., •    •   •   .   .  2  to  1182  ==—382 

Slate,    ... 7  to  1189  =—  339 

SS.,  .,  . 1  to  1190  =—  390 

Slate,  .  .' 2  to  1192  =—  392 

SS., 2  to  1194  ==  —  394 

Red  rock, 1  to  1195  =—  395 

SS., 7  to  1202  =  —  402 

Slate  and  shells, 13  to  1215  =  —  415 

Red  rock, 7  to  1222  =  —  422 

SS.,  and  shells, 10  to  1232  =  —  432 

Slate, 8  to  1240  =  —  440 


410  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Red  rock, 4  to  1244  =  -  444 

Slate, 4  to  1248  =  —  448 

SS.,  blue,  white,  and  pebble, 9  to  1257  =  —  457 

Slate, 13  to  1270  —  —  470 

Bed  rock,          2  to  1272  =  —  472 

Slate,        5  to  1277  =  —  477 

SS.,  white  and  hard 18  to  1295  ==  —  495 

Red  rock, 7  to  1302  =  —  502 

Slate, 6  to  1308  =  —  508 

Red  rock,  with  shell  of  slate, 17  to  1325  =  —  525 

SS.,  gray,        2  to  1327  =  —  527 

Red  rock,  with  2  feet  of  sand  shell, 11  to  1338  =  —  538 

Slate,  dark,                                       12  to  1350  =  —  550 

SS.,  dark  gray  thin  white  and  very  hard, 18  to  1368  =  —  568 

Slate  and  shells, 10  to  1378  =  —  578 

SS., 10  to  1388  =  —  588 

Slate, 8  to  1396  =  —  596 

Shell, 2  to  1398  =  —  598 

Slate, 32  to  1430  =%—  630 

Red  rock, . 40  to  1470  =  —  670 

Slate  and  shell, 30  to  1500  =  —  700 

Slate,           50  to  1550  =—  750 

Shells  and  slate, 25  to  1575  =  —  775 

SS.,  pebble,      1  to  1576  =  —  776 

Slate  and  shell, .  21  to  1597  =  —  797 

Red  rock,  very  hard  88., 15  to  1612  —  —  812 

Slate  and  shell, 18  to  1630  =  —  830 

SS.,  dark, 8  to  1638  =  —  838 

Slate  and  shell,        4  to  1642  =  —  842 

SS.,  light  colored, 8  to  1650  =  —  850 

SS.,  red, 10  to  1660  =  —  860 

Shell,  hard,thin  slate, 20  to  1680  =  —  880 

SS., 6  to  1686  =  —  886 

Slate,   4  to  1690  —  —  890 

SS., 3  to  1693  =  —  893 

"The  Ferriferous  limestone  is  supposed  to  lie  about  35 
feet  above  the  well  mouth." 


Midland  Well  No.  1,  (Plate  VII,  Fig.  35.) 

1876. 

§  667.  On  Jacob  Brinker  Farm,  near  Millville  Clarion  county.     Authority 
Col.  Jos.  D.  Potts,  per  A.  B.  Rowland. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet,  about, 1080 

Conductor,  to,    . 8  to       8  =       1072 

Limestone,  Ferriferous 2  to      10  =       1070 


MIDLAND  WELL  NO.   1.                             III.  411 

Coal, 1 

SS.,  black,    .  18 

Goal,      >  26t°     36=  1044 

SS.,  black, 4 

Slate,      .  40  to     76  =  1004 

Shells, 2  to     78  =  1002 

Slate,      33  to    111  =  969 

SS.,  white, 3  to    114  =  966 

Slate, 32  to    146  =  934 

Coal, 1  to    147  —  933 

Slate, '  .  4  to  151  =  929 

Coal, 2  to  153  =  927 

Slate, 17  to  170  =  910 

Coal, 4  to  174  "—  906 

Slate, 44  to   218  =  862 

SS.,  gray,     10  to    228  =  852 

Slate, 2  to   230  =  850 

SS.,  white 57  to   287  =  793 

Slate, 24  to    311  =  769 

SS.,  "  Mountain  Sand," 251  to    562  =  518 

Bedrock, 15 to   577  =  503 

SS.,  white,   . 10  to   587  =  493 

Slate,  shelly, 75  to   662  =  418 

SS.,  white,  gas, 20  to   682  =  398 

Slate,  with  shells, 128  to   810  =  270 

Pebble  shell, 1  to    811  =  269 

Slate,         10  to    821  =  259 

Shell,  white 5  to    826  =  254 

Slate, 12  to   838  =  242 

SS.,  pebble, 10  to    848  =  232 

Slate, 8  to    856  =  224 

SS.,  white, 14  to    870  =  210 

Slate,      2  to   872  =  208 

SS.,  white, 80  to   952  =  128 

SS.,  gray, 20  to    972  =  108 

SS.,  and  slate, 18  to    990  =  90 

Red  rock,     5  to    995  =  -J-  85 

Slate,  shelly, 135  to  1130  =  —  50 

Red  rock, 22  to  1152  =  —  72 

Slate  and  grey  shells, 33  to  1185  =—  105 

Slate, 11  to  1196  ==  —  116 

Red  rock,      4  to  1200  =  —  120 

Slate,  shelly, 10  to  1210  =  —  130 

Red  rock,      43  to  1253  =  —  173 

Shell,      1  to  1254  =  —  174 

Slate,      30  to  1284  =  —  204 

Shells  and  slate, 24  to  1308  =  —  228 

Shell, 3  to  1311  =  —  231 

Red  rock, 5  to  1316  =  —  236 

Slate,  shelly, 7  to  1323  =  —  243 

SS., •    • 9  to  1332  =  —  252 

Slate, 8  to  1340  =  —  260 


412  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Shells  and  slate, 10  to  1350  =  —   270 

SS., 5  to  1355  =  —    275 

Slate,  shelly, 40  to  1395  =  —    315 

Red  rock, 45  to  1440  =  —    3GO 

Red  mud,     5  to  1445  =  —    3G5 

Slate,  blue, .  105  to  1550  =  —   470 

Red  rock,      60  to  1610  =  —   530 

Shells  and  blue  slate, 100  to  1710  =  —   630 

Red  rock,  very  pale, 5  to  1715  =  —   635 

Shell  and  blue  slate, .' 10  to  1725  =  —    645 

SS.,  gray,  "Drillers'  First  Sand," 40  to  1765  =  —    685 

Slate  and  shells  with  red  streaks, 110  to  1875  =  —   795 

SS.,  grey,  (show of  oil  and  gas)" Second  sand,"    ....  45  to  19JO  = —   840 

Slate,  blue, 30  to  1950  =  —   870 

Sand  shell,  light  gray, 4  to  1954  =  —   874 

Shells  and  blue  slate, 56  to  2010  =  —    930 

Pebble  shell,       1  to  2011  =  —   931 

Slate  and  shells, 21  to  2032  =  —   952 

Shell,  gray,      4  to  2036  =—   956 

Shells  and  blue  slate, 27  to  20fi3  =  —    983 

Sand  shell,       6  to  20G9  =  —   989 

Shells  and  blue  slate, 39  to  2108  =  —  1028 

SS.,  white, 10  to  2118  =  —  1038 

Slate,  blue, 4  to  2122  =  —  1012 

Pebble  shell, 2  to  2124  =  —  1044 

Shells  and  blue  slate, , 42  to  21f 6  =  —  1086 

SS.,  gas  and  oil  show  "  Stray," 60  to  2226  =  — 1146 

Slate,  blue, 22  to  2248  =—1168 

Slate  blue, 32  to  2280  =  —  1200 


Cherry  Run  Well.     (Plate  V,  Fig.  21,  and  Plate  VII, 
Fig.  36.) 

1878? 

5  668.  On  Plyer  farm  near  center  of  Toby  twp.,  Clarion  co.    Authority,  Col. 
Jos.  D.  Potts,  per  A.  B.  Howland. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet 

Conductor,  ( Ferriferous  eroded  here, ) 5to  5  = 

SS.,  and  shells,     •  56  to  61  = 

SS., 15  to  76  = 

Slate,     35  to  111  = 

SS., 150  to  261  = 

Slate 5  to  266  = 

SS., 385  to  451  = 

Slate  and  shales, 130  to  581  = 

SS.,        44  to  625  = 

Slate  and  shale,  (oil,) 283  to  908  = 

SS.,  gas,  ...  .   .   ) 

Slate, 5  > 105  to  1013  = 

SS.,  gas,  pebbles,   .   .   .  ) 


GEISWOLD  WELL  NO.  1.  III.  413 

Slate  and  shells,  (5  feet  red.) 35  to  1048  = 

SS.,  blue,         12  to  1060  = 

Slate,  red,  with  sand  shells, 30  to  1090  = 

Slate, 5  to  1095  = 

Sandstone  bowlder,  solid 23  to  1118  = 

Slate,  3  feet,  red, 15  to  1133  = 

SS.,  red  brown  and  yellow,  oil  show  at  1143',     15  to  1148  = 

Slate,  blue,  with  hard  shells,      28  to  1176  = 

SS,,  black  and  yellow  pebbles,                   3  to  1179  = 

Bed  rock  and  brown  and  olive  sandy  shale, 9  to  1183  = 

SS.,  (pebbles,  and  oil  show  at  1193';          15  to  1203  = 

Red  shales  with  white  and  blue  (lags, 32  to  1235  = 

Red,  olive  and  white  shells  and  blue  slate,      26  to  12(51  = 

SS.,  close  white  hard, 9  to  1270  = 

Slate, 13  to  1283  = 

SS.,  (oil  show  at  1287') 9  to  1292  = 

Slate,      10  to  1302  = 

SS.,  loose,  oily, 5  to  1307  = 

Shells  Ac., 11  to  1318  = 

SS.,  oily  all  through, 19  to  1337  = 

Slate,  blue, 63  to  1400  = 

The  Ferriferous  limestone  is  seen  in  place  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  well.  The  conductor  occupies  its  horizon, 
it  having  been  eroded  at  the  spot  where  the  well  is  located. 


Griswold  Well  No.  1.    (PL  VI,  F.  30,  and  PL  VII,  F.  38.) 

May,  1878. 

§  6G9.  "This  well  is  located  on  Rattlesnake  gulch,  north  of  Clarion  ;  about 
one  mile  from  the  river  and  one  mile  east  of  Toby  creek ;  on  the  property  for- 
merly known  as  the  'Penn  Mill  Tract,'  and  now  owned  by  Win.  Griswold, 
of  Philadelphia."  Authority  :  John  W.  Griswold. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean,  in  feet,     

Conductor, 22  to  22  = 

Shales,  soft,  dark, 26  to  48  = 

SS.,  "bluff  sand," 52  to  100  = 

Slate,  dark,  with  gray  sand  shells, 10  to  110  = 

Coal,  trace, —  to  110  = 

Slate,  dark,  with  gray  sand  shells, 110  to  220  = 

SS.,  gray,      20  j 

SS.,  white,  .110  j  Mt.  sand, 160  to  380  = 

SS  ,  gray,      30  >  ,'  , 

Slate  and  sand  shells,     50  to  430  = 

SS.,  (cased  at  440')  " salt  water  sand," 70  to  500  = 

SS.,  some  pebbles,  25  J                                                             60  56Q  = 

SS.,  white,  ....    35    ) 

Slate, 185  to  745  = 


414  III.        RKPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

SS.,  hard  gray  shell,      5  ^ 

SS.,  yellow,     .   .   .   .  107  £  "  1st  sand," 130  to   875  = 

SS.,  white, 18  ) 

Slate,  sandy, 15  to   890  = 

Red  rock, 5  to    895  = 

SS.,  with  gas, 5  to   900  = 

Slate,  with  sand  shells, 53  to   953  = 

SS.,  "Zdsand,'         '  .   .  42  to   995  = 

Red  rock,  "  Big  red," 90  to  1085  = 

Slate,  traces  of  red, 5  to  1090  = 

Red  shale, 5  to  1095  = 

Slate, 5  to  1100  = 

SS.,  "  Green  bowlder," 3  to  1103  = 

Slate, 3  to  1106  = 

SS.,  "Stray  3d," .' 3  to  1109  = 

Slate  and  shells, 6  to  1115  = 

SS.,  "3d  sand," 40  to  1155  == 

Slate  and  shells, 21  to  1176  = 

Red  shale, 7  to  1183  = 

Slate,  with  layer  of  gray  SS., 27  to  1210  = 

Red  rock, 5  to  1215  = 

Slate,         4  to  1219  = 

Slate,  with  sand  shells,  some  pebbles, 11  to  1230  = 

Slate, 8  to  1238  = 

"  Some  gas,  but  not  quite  enough  to  fire  the  boiler.    Only 
a  ' show'  of  oil." 


Rohrer  Well,  No.  2.     (Plate  VI,  Fig.  29.) 

1877. 

§  670.  On  Deer  creek  1|  miles  S.  of  Shippenville,  Elk  township,  Clarion 
co.,  Pa.  "Well  is  located  on  the  bank  of  Deer  creek  about  half  way  between 
Black's  furnace  and  the  old  forge  about  125'  below  the  level  of  the  surround- 
ing country."  Authority,  C.  E.  Hatch,  Edenburg. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet. 

?,         660  to  660  = 

1st  red  rock  with  layers  of  slate, 48  to  708  = 

Shell,  very  hard,      ...                     4  to  712  = 

Red  rock,  with  small  streak  of  slate, 24  to  736  = 

Slate  and  shells,           .                         20  to  756  = 

Red  rock,  soft ;  hard  shell  at  bottom, 44  to  800  = 

Slate, 20  to  820  == 

Red  rock, 15  to  835  = 

Slate;  with  one  hard  shell, 18  to  853  = 

SS.,  (oil  rock?)  hard,  blue  to  lighter  color, 17  to  870  = 

Slate ;  with  hard  shell, 34  to  904  = 

SS.,  very  hard,  small  flow  gas, 16  to  920  = 

Slate  and  hard  shell, 50  to  970  = 

Red  rock  and  shell, .  40  to  1010  = 


STROTMAN  WELL.  III.  415 

Slate  and  shells, 95  to  1105  = 

Red  rock  with  very  hard  shells, 25  to  1130  = 

Slate,  with  some  shells,        170  to  1300  = 

Slate ;  soft,  pale  red,      40  to  1340  = 

Slate,  with  very  hard  sand  shells, 50  to  1390  = 

SS.,  hard  and  tine,       30  to  1420  = 

Slate;  soft  and  "milky,"     50  to  1470  = 

SS.,  hard  and  shelly,      8  to  1478  = 

Slate ;  soft  and  white,  with  shells, 112  to  1590  = 

SS.,  strong  smell  oil, 12  to  1602  = 

Slate  ;  soft,  with  shells, 138  to  1740  = 

SS.,  with  heavy  gas  vein, 11  to  1751  == 

SS.,  similar  to  cornmeal, 10  to  1761  = 

SS.,  gray  and  coarse,      19  to  1780  = 

SS.,  smells  strong  of  oil,  (lighter  color,) 10  to  1790  = 

SS.,  and  shells,  (50  ?) 40  to  1830  = 

Shell,  very  hard, 4  to  1834  = 

SS.,  with  shells  and  some  slate,  .   .   .    i          c   .......    42  to  1876  = 

SS.,  with  shells  and  some  slate,  .   .   .   \  191/  \ 149  to  2025  = 

"  The  last  149'  was  a  mixture  of  gray  and  blue  sand  with 
an  occasional  hard  shell  and  a  very  little  slate  in  thin 
streaks.  The  well  is  2025'  deep  and  stopped  in  sand.  Cased 
at  260'.  No  record  kept  of  1st  and  2nd  sands,  but  they 
were  passed  through  in  their  proper  positions." 

The  well  is  about  half  way  between  Black's  furnace  and 
the  old  forge.  Unproductive. 


Strotman   Well.     (Plate  VI,  Fig.  26.} 

Summer  1877. 

§  671.  Elk  township,  Clarion  co.,  2  miles  N.  E.  of  Berlin's  Tavern.    Peter 
Schreiber,  owner.    Authority,  J.  R.  Smith,  contractor. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet. 

? 573  to  573  = 

Shells,  gas, 7  to  580  = 

Slate,            167  to  747  = 

SS.,  pebble  on  top,  gas, "  1st  sand,"  .   .    58  to  805  = 

Slate, 37  to  842  = 

Sand  shells,  gas 38  to  880  = 

Red  rock 10  to  890  = 

Sand  shells, 10  to  900  = 

Red  rock, 14  to  914  = 

Slate,     26  to  940  = 

Sandy  shells,      10  to  950  = 

Slate,         34  to  984  = 

SS.,  dark,  few  pebbles, 

"     and  pebbly, 5  \  "  .id  sand,"    .    .    20  to  1004 

"    very  dark  and  fine, 


416  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Slate,  gas, 15  to  1019  = 

S3.,  coarse  pebble,  gas, 3>  12  to  1031  = 

"    fine,      ' 9  $ 

Slate,         17  to  1C4S  = 

Yellow  pebble,     2  to  1050  = 

Slate, 6  to  1050  = 

SS.  and  yellow  pebbles;  gas, 2)  8  to  1034  

"   white  and  hard, 6  > 

Slate  and  shells, 35  to  1099  = 

Bed  rock  and  shells,  "chocolate,"  in  layers, 16  to  1115  = 

Some  little  oil  in  top  of  3d  sand,  but  not  in  paying  quan- 
tity. 

Bains'    Well.     (Plate  VL  Fig.  22.} 

February,  1876. 

§  G72.  On  Holliday  run,  near  Oil  City.    Authority,  Jos.  D.  Potts,  per  A.  B. 
Hovvland. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet. 

Conductor, 18  to  18  = 

?      242  to  260  = 

Shelly  rock, '. 39  to  299  = 

SS.,        Mountain  sand  ...    44  to  313  = 

Slates,  &c., 108  to  451  = 

Red  rock, 86  to  537  = 

S3., "Isisand,"  ....    37  to  574  = 

Slates,  &c., 107  to  681  = 

SS., "Sdsand,"  .    ...    28  to  709  = 

Slates,  &c., 81  to  790  = 

S3.,  gray, 14  to  804  = 

Slates, ]9  to  8^3  = 

S3.,  oil,     "3d  sand,"  .   ...    18  to  841  = 

Slate,      25  to  86G  = 

Shelly  rock, 50  to  910  = 

SS.,  dark, 30  to  955  = 

Slate,  dark  and  shelly, 115  to  1070  = 


Iron  Bridge  or  Chew  Well.    (Plate  IV,  Fig.  8.) 

1870-7. 

C73.  Located  on  hillside,  20  rods  east  of  Slippery  Rock  creek,  40  rods  south 
of  Iron  Bridge,  Perry  township  Lawrence  ex,  Penna.,  and  2  miles  S.  20°  W. 
of  well  at  mouth  of  Cove  Hollow.  Authority,  Geo.  H.  Nesbitt,  owner,  per 
Geo.  II.  Dimick,  manager. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet. 

Bluff  sand,       15  to  15  = 

Slate, 10  to  23  = 

Coal, 2  to  27  = 


COVE  HOLLOW  OE  SHAFFER  WELL.  III.  417 

Slate,* 143  to  170  = 

SS., 67  to  237  = 

Slate  and  sand  shells  (fresh  water,) .   .    50  to  287  = 

SS.,  light  gray  and  close, 21  to  308  = 

Slate, 20  to  328  = 

SS.,  (saltwater,) 25  to  353  = 

Slate, 213  to  566  = 

SS,,  a  little  amber  oil, 30  to  596  = 

Slate;  18"  sand  shell  at  690,' 194  to  790  = 

Red  rock,  (stopped  in  it,)     1  to  791  = 

Cased  first  at  237'  then  at  267'  and  finally  at  370'. 

Unproductive,  very  little  show  of  oil  or  gas. 

The  record  adds  :  "The  lubricating  oil  rock  was  passed 
through  from  287'  to  308',  and  it  is  evident  that  the  oil  must 
be  found  in  crevices,  as  this  well  is  located  on  a  line  between 
two  well  known  producers  of  1865,  and  should  have  found 
either  water  from  the  old  wells  or  a  supply  of  oil,  if  the 
rock  had  riot  been  too  close  for  the  movement  of  fluid  through 
it." 

The  proximity  of  the  old  wells  probably  accounts  for  the 
fresh  water  in  the  shelly  measure  above  this  close  sandrock. 
At  690'  a  slight  show  of  oil  and  gas  was  found  in  a  sand 
shell  about  18  inches  thick. 


Cove  Hollow  or  Shaffer  Well.^    (Plate IV,  Fig.  9.) 

1876-7. 

§  674.  Situated  on  Slippery  Rock  creek  at  the  mouth  of  Cove  Hollow,  Slip- 
pery Rock  township,  Lawrence  co.,  Pa.  Two  miles  N,  20°  E.  of  "  Iron  Bridge 
Well."  Authority,  Geo.  H.  Nesbitt,  owner,  per  Geo.  H.  Dimick,  manager. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet. 

Conductor, ,    .  8  to  8  = 

Bluff  sand, SOto  38  = 

Slate, 42  to  80  = 

Blue  limestone, 3  to  83  = 

Slate 12  to  95  = 

SS.,  gray,  "60  rock," 75  to  170  = 

*The  figures  down  to  170  feet  do  not  agree  with  Prof.  White's  section  of 
this  well  (QQ.  page  89),  but  they  are  copied  from  Mr.  Dimick's  letter  con- 
taining the  well  record  in  his  own  handwriting. 

t  This  record  like  that  of  "  Iron  Bridge  Well "  disagrees  with  Prof.  White's, 
(QQ.  p.  154.)      The  disagreement  illustrates  the  unreliability  of  oil  well 
records  even  when  they  are  given  by  the  same  party,  but  to  different  persons 
and  at  different  times. 
27  III. 


418  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Slate, 340  to   510  = 

SS.,  gray,  (a  little  amber  oil,) 40  to   550  = 

Slate,  with  an  occasional  shell, 150  to   700  = 

Red  rock, 26  to   726  = 

Slate,  sand  shell  at  800',  black  oil 164  to   890  = 

Red  rock, 40  to   930  = 

Slate  and  occasional  shells,      313  to  1273  = 

Conglomerate,  black  and  red  slate  and  pebbles, 10  to  1283  = 

SS.,  brown  or  light  gray,  fine, 5  to  1288  = 

SS.,  black,  dark  gray  when  dry, 32  to  1320  = 

Slate  dark,  a  few  shells, 116  to  1436  — 

Cased  at  249  feet.     Unproductive. 

"At  800'  struck  a  shell  yielding  a  few  gallons  of  black 
oil  of  light  gravity  supposed  from  46°  to  48°." 


John  Smith  Well.    (Plate  IV,  Figs.  2  and  10.) 

1877. 

§  675.  On  John  Smith  farm,  Brady  township,  one  and  a  quarter  miles  north- 
west from  the  Prospect  bridge,  over  Muddy  creek.  Owners,  Messrs.  Phillips 
Bros.  Authority,  E  J.  Agnew,  per  W.  G.  Power. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet,  (barometer,) 1325 


Slate  and  fireclay,    

.   .230 

to 

230 

— 

1095 

Limestone,  Ferriferous,  

.   .    15 

to 

245 

= 

1080 

Slate  and  clay,   

.   .    27 

to 

272 

= 

1053 

SS.,     

.   .    18 

to 

290 

=a 

1035 

Slate,  black,   

.   .110 

to 

400 

— 

925 

ss.,   

.   .    65 

to 

465 

= 

860 

Slate,  

.   .      3 

to 

468 

= 

857 

SS.,    "Mountain  sand,"    . 

.    .100 

to 

568 

sa 

757 

Slate  and  shells,   

.    .    72 

to 

640 

— 

685 

SS.,  gray,     

.   .    50 

to 

690 

B9 

635 

.   .    10 

to 

700 

ss 

625 

SS.,     

.   .    30 

to 

730 

— 

595 

Slate,  

.   .180 

to 

910 

— 

415 

SS.,     

.   .    26 

to 

936 

— 

389 

Slate  and  shells,    

.   .119 

to 

1055 

= 

270 

Red  rock,     

.   .    60 

to  1115  = 

210 

Slate  and  shells,   

.   .    15 

to 

1130 

— 

195 

SS.,    "1st  sand,"  . 

.    .    60 

to 

1190 

— 

135 

Slate  

.    .    85 

to 

1275 

= 

+     60 

SS.,  rotten,  20  j 

Slate,  20  [  '-2d  sand,"  . 

.    .    65 

to 

1340 

= 

—     15 

SS.,     25) 

Slate,  

.   .    55 

to 

139- 

— 

—     70 

Granite,    

.    .      5 

to 

1400 

as 

—     75 

Slate,  

.   .    31 

to 

1431 

= 

-    106 

SS.,  ("off  color,")  "Sdsand,"  . 

.    .    19 

to 

14.50 

=-. 

—    125 

Slate,  black,   

.   .      8fc 

to 

14581= 

—   133^ 

EAYMOND  WELL  NO.  6.  III.  419 

The  Third  sand  was  poor,  and  quite  shelly,  and  produced 
no  oil. 

This  well  was  subsequently  sunk  to  a  depth  of  1596'.  A 
thick  mass  of  red,  rocJc  was  found  near  the  bottom. 


Boyce,  Rawle  &  Co.'s  Well,  (Plate  IV,  Fig.  3.) 

Spring  of  1877. 

§  676.  At  Sharon  Furnace,  1>  miles  above  Sharon.    Authority,  Mr.  Hall 
Sharon  Furnace. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean  in  feet,  (by  barometer,) 900 

Clay  and  gravel,  > 

Coarse  gravel,      C 100  to    100  =        800 

Bowlders, 

Shale,   "soapstone," 85  to    185  =:       715 

SS.,  white,  sharp,        "Mountain  sand,"  .   .    75  to    260=        640 

Shale,  light-blue  and  some  red,    ....       305  to   565  =       335 

SS.,  gray,  tine  oil, "1st  sand," 30  to   595=        305 

Shales,  lead  color, 23  to   618=       282 

Shelly,  oil  and  gas "Stray,"      —to    618=  -f  282 

Shales,  lead  colored  and  brownish,  turning  to  dark-blue 

near  bottom,      607  to  1225  =  —  325 

Shales,  blue-gray  and  brown,  with  thin  layers  of  fine  grit,  375  to  1600=  —  700 

Fresh  water  at  46',  175',  and  280.' 

Gas  at  485'  and  618'. 

Cased  5|"  casing,  at  175' ;  cased  4J"  casing,  at  280'. 

Traces  of  oil  either  in  "1st  SS.,"  or  at  618'.     Amber  oil, 
heavy  gravity  ;  no  salt  water. 


Raymond  Well  No.  6.     (Plate  IV,  Fig.  4-} 

1877. 

§  677.  At  Raymilton,  Sandy  Creek  township,  Venango  county.    Authority, 
A.  K.  Williams'  note  book. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean,  in  feet, 1196 

Conductor, 19  to     19  =  1177 

Slate,  ? 51  to     70  =  1126 

SS.,  (cased  at  191'),  ? 100  to    170  =  1026 

Slate  (shells  and  gas  at  about  360'),      262  to    432  =  764 

Red  rock, 100  to   532  =  664 

SS.,  (oil,)  10  j 

Slate,    .   .  19  ["3d  sand," 47  to   579  =  617 

SS.,    .   .   .18) 

Slate,  no"  stray  sand," 259  to   83S  =  358 

SS.,  oil  show,  "3d  sand," 10  to    848  =  348 


420  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Slate 152  to  1000  =      196 

Red  rock, 100  to  1100  =       96 

Slate,     250  to  1350  =  —154 

Shells  and  shale  (oil  show  and  gas), 20  to  1370  =  —174 

Shells,  mud  and  slate, 40  to  1410  =  —214 


Reliance  Well.    (Plate  IV,  Fig.  12. 


§  678.  Located  on  land  of  A.  W.  Brown,  near  the  corner  of  Myrick  and  Chest- 
nut streets,  in  the  borough  of  Pleasant ville.    Authority,  E.  S.  Nettleton. 

Well  mouth  above  ocean,  in  feet, 1652 

Sandy  shale  and  surface  clay, 141  to  141  =  1511 

SS., /Second  mountain  sand,    ....    35  to  176  =  1476 

Shale 208  to  384  =  1268 

SS., Pithole  grit, 22  to  406  =  1246 

Shale 139  to  545  =  1107 

Red  rock, 55  to  600  =  1052 

SS., First  sand, 28  to  628  =  1024 

Shale  and  slate,  .   .  .  .  W 113  to  741  =    911 

SS,, Second  sand, 42  to  783  =    869 

Slate 71  to  854  =    798 

SS., Stray  Third, 11  to  865  =    787 

Slate, 20  to  885  =    767 

SS., Third  sand .    37  to  922  =    730 

Slate, 94  to  1016  =    636 

Prilled  wet.    But  little  gas  or  oil. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Gravel  Pit  Oil  Wells. 

Grey's  Well  and  others  in  Ohio, 

§  679.  The  history  of  petroleum  developments  in  Penn- 
sylvania has  been  a  record  of  wonderful  incidents  and 
repeated  surprises.  When  Messrs.  Eveleth  and  Bissel  or- 
ganized "the  Pennsylvania  Rock  Oil  Company"*  for  the 
purpose  of  collecting  ' '  Seneca  oil ' '  from  a  series  of  trenches 
and  pits  on  Watson's  flats  near  Titusville,  where  the  strange 
fluid  came  up  in  globules  and  spread  upon  the  water  when- 
ever a  ditch  was  dug,  they  little  thought  what  was  to  be 
the  ultimate  results  of  their  enterprise.  It  was  a  suprise  to 
them,  therefore,  when  after  nearly  five  year's  ill  success  and 
discouragement  with  the  pick  and  shovel,  their  first  ven- 
ture at  drilling,  the  Drake  well,  yielded  barrels  of  oil  where 
they  had  only  anticipated  gallons.  It  was  a  surprise  to  the 
world  when  a  couple  of  years  later  several  wells  along  Oil 
creek  started  to  flow  at  the  rate  of  from  one  thousand  to 
thirty-five  hundred  barrels  per  day.  It  was  a  surprise  to 
the  ' '  experienced  operator ' '  when  the  highlands  were  found 
to  be  as  good  for  oil  as  the  creek  bottoms  ;  when  the  deep 
rocks  of  Armstrong,  Clarion,  and  Butler  proved  to  be  so 
largely  productive  ;  and  when  the  hidden  treasures  of  War- 
ren and  McKean  counties  began  to  be  revealed.  It  was  also 
a  surprise  when  it  was  announced  that  on  the  6th  day  of 
April,  1877,  a  pit  only  fifteen  feet  deep  had  been  dug  on 
Watson's  flats  which  was  yielding  by  a  common  hand-pump 
thirty  barrels  of  oil  per  day,  and  this  within  a  few  rods  of 
territory  which  had  been  thoroughly  operated  upon  ten  or 

*This  was  the  first  oil  company  organized  in  the  United  States,  the  certifi- 
cate of  incorporation  having  been  filed  in  the  cities  of  New  York  and  Albany 
on  the  30th  of  December,  1854.  The  "  Seneca  Oil  Company  "  operating  under 
a  lease  from  the  above,  and  embracing  several  of  the  original  stockholders, 
came  into  existence  on  the  23d  of  March,  1858,  and  under  its  direction  the 
Drake  well  was  drilled. 

(  421  III.  ) 


422  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CAKLL. 

fifteen  years  before.  At  first  many  were  disinclined  to  be- 
lieve the  report  and  for  some  time  the  novel  development 
attracted  but  little  attention.  But  the  original  discoverers 
Messrs.  Herron  and  Potts  kept  quietly  at  work  and  opened 
several  additional  pits  which  added  to  their  production, 
and  it  became  clearly  apparent  that  they  were  shipping 
considerable  quantities  of  oil.  An  excitement  on  a  limited 
scale  then  suddenly  broke  out  which  rivaled  the  liveliest 
days  of  Pithole  or  Pleasant ville.  Operatorsfrom  every  part 
of  the  oil  regions  flocked  in  to  see  the  novelty.  Crowded 
stages  lined  the  highway  leading  from  Titusville  to  "Grass- 
hopper City,"  (so  named  from  the  singular  manner  in  which 
the  hand-pumps  were  coupled  together  and  worked,  at  first 
by  horse-power  and  afterwards  by  steam,)  and  it  is  said 
that  from  1000  to  1500  visitors  were  daily  upon  the  ground. 
But  inasmuch  as  the  extent  of  territory  supposed  to  be 
good  was  limited  to  a  few  acres,  at  most,  the  excitement 
soon  abated  for  want  of  something  to  feed  upon. 

§  680.  The  following  letter  written  for  StoweW s  Petro- 
leum Reporter,  and  dated  Pleasantville,  August  28,  1877, 
is  re-printed  here  as  a  part  of  the  history  of  this  remark- 
able development : 

In  August,  1859,  just  18  years  ago  to-day,  the  quiet  little 
hamlet  of  Titusville  was  electrified  by  the  report  that  pe- 
troleum had  been  found  in  large  quantities  at  a  depth  of  70 
feet,  in  the  Drake  well.  Since  that  time  probably  30,000 
oil  wells  have  been  sunk,  and  great  improvement  has  been 
made  in  the  art  of  drilling.  An  ordinary  1,500  foot  well  is 
put  down  to-day  with  more  ease  and  dispatch  than  was  this 
little  70  foot  well  in  1859.  We  are  not  even  surprised  to 
learn  that  the  Watson  well,  within  two  miles  and  a  half  of 
this  first  venture,  has  been  carried  down  to  the  great  depth 
of  3,553  feet,  for  we  have  become  prepared  for  almost  any 
achievement  of  the  drill. 

But  now  appear  new  claimants  for  our  notice.  The  pick 
and  shovel  step  forward  to  take  the  place  of  the  drill.  A 
15  foot  gravel  pit  assumes  to  supersede  the  1,500  foot  drill 
hole.  And  curiously  enough,  this  happens  on  the  same 
creek  flat,  and  within  a  mile  of  the  old  Drake  well. 


GRAVEL  PIT  OIL  WELLS.  III.  423 

The  gravel-well  district  of  Titusville  is  the  latest  wonder 
of  oildom — at  least  it  has  been  made  such  by  the  exagger- 
ated reports  and  astounding  theories  in  relation  to  it,  that 
have  gained  currency  through  the  daily  press. 

Let  us  see  what  are  the  geological  facts  concerning  it,  and 
what  the  relations  it  bears  to  the  regular  oil  producing  rocks 
of  the  district. 

Titusville  is  situated  in  abroad  irregularly  outlined  basin 
of  erosion,  between  hills  more  than  300  feet  high,  at  the 
junction  of  Pine  creek  and  Oil  creek.  The  "flat,"  or  old 
water  plain,  contains  perhaps  1,000  acres,  having  its  greatest 
length  in  a  N.  W.  and  S.  E.  direction.  Oil  creek  enters  it 
at  the  N".  W.  angle  and  sweeping  around  to  the  east  and 
south  leaves  it  at  its  S.  W.  angle.  Pine  creek  falling  from 
the  N.  E.  and  east,  enters  at  the  S.  E.  angle,  and  joins  Oil 
creek  near  the  outlet.  Church  run  from  the  north,  Shaffer 
and  McGee  runs  from  the  south,  and  several  other  minor 
runs  likewise  empty  into  it.  "Watson  flats,"  a  locality  re- 
nowned in  the  early  history  of  petroleum  developments  is 
included  within  these  outlines. 

The  new  oil  pits  are  near  the  Pleasantville  plank  road, 
which  passes  along  the  northeasterly  side  of  the  basin  before 
crossing  Pine  creek.  More  than  100  oil  wells  have  been  sunk 
on  these  flats  in  the  usual  way  since  1859,  and  by  the  length 
of  drive  pipe  required  to  reach  the  bed  rock,  they  conclu- 
sively demonstrate  the  fact  that  the  channel  of  the  old  stream, 
once  flowing  between  these  hills,  was  a  hundred  feet  or  more 
below  the  present  surface.  Within  a  rod  or  two  of  some  of 
these  oil  pits  53  feet  of  pipe  was  driven  through  these  su- 
perficial deposits  ;  a  little  further  out  towards  the  center  of 
the  basin  80  feet ;  and  in  the  center  about  100  feet.  As  the 
oil  pits  on  the  creek-flat  are  only  from  15  to  18  feet  deep  it 
will  be  seen  at  a  glance  that  the  oil  is  not  obtained  from 
the  stratified  rocks,  for  the  old  wells  referred  to  show  that 
they  lie  much  deeper,  and  have  not  been  reached  by  the 
pick. 

This  basin,  then,  as  it  existed  in  pre-glacial  times,  must 
have  been  at  least  one  hundred  feet  deeper  than  it  is  at 
present.  It  was  occupied  by  a  stream  whose  birth  could 


424  III.       EEPORT  OF  PKOGRESS.      JOIIX  F.   CAELL. 

scarcely  have  antedated  the  close  of  the  carboniferous 
period,  and  whose  great  age  can  only  be  surmised  from  the 
evidences  it  has  left  behind  in  the  magnitude  of  the  work 
performed.  At  this  point  it  had  already  cut  down  through 
the  solid  rocks  to  within  fifty  feet  of  the  first  oil  sand.  This 
would  be  equivalent  (if  the  rocks  originally  lay  here  as  they 
now  lie  at  Pittsburgh)  to  a  vertical  excavation  of  1.900  feet. 
It  is  quite  probable  that  it  flowed  to  the  north  (as  did  others 
of  these  northerly  streams  at  that  day)  delivering  its  waters 
into  the  Lake  Erie  basin. 

But  now  a  great  change  occurs — the  glacial  epoch  comes 
on — a  thick  ice-sheet  covers  all  the  northern  country  ;  slowly 
advancing  and  holding  in  its  icy  grasp  fragments  of  rocks, 
gathered  along  its  track,  all  the  way  from  Northern  Canada, 
it  levels  off  the  hilltops,  widens  out  the  valleys,  and  plunges 
into  the  old  river  beds  its  burden  of  mixed  transported 
debris.  The  northern  outlets  of  drainage  are  all  covered 
with  ice  and  obstructed,  and  when  long  afterward,  under  a 
modification  of  climate,  a  recession  of  the  glacier  commences, 
pools  and  lakes  of  water  accumulate  in  front  of  it ;  they  fill 
up  and  overflow  at  the  lowest  depressions  in  the  hills  at  the 
south.  As  these  new  outlets  gradually  deepen,  the  lake 
surfaces  lower,  the  lake  bottom  fills  up  with  detritus  brought 
in  by  the  melting  ice,  and  finally  when  the  ice  disappears, 
we  find  the  old  river  beds  at  the  north  filled  with  hundreds 
of  feet  of  Drift,  the  valleys  almost  obliterated,  and  a  new 
direction  given  to  all  the  drainage  of  this  section  of  the 
State.  This  is  but  a  brief  and  partial  statement  of  the 
probable  sequence  of  events  during  this  epoch.  It  may 
serve  to  show,  however,  that  the  beds  of  gravel  or  sand  from 
which  these  pick  and  shovel  wells  obtain  their  oil,  could  not 
have  been  deposited  until  near  the  close  of  the  Glacial 
period,  for  they  lie  very  near  the  top  of  the  Drift. 

Examination  of  the  sand  or  gravel  shows  that  it  is  com- 
posed of  a  mixture  of  water- worn  comminuted  particles  de- 
rived from  the  Primary  rocks,  the  Silurian  limestones,  and 
the  Local  measures  of  the  surrounding  hills.  It  is  a  com- 
paratively recent  deposit,  filling  up  an  old  deeply  excavated 


GRAVEL  PIT  OIL  WELLS.  III.  425 

channel  in  the  sedimentary  rocks,  which  channel  had  pre- 
viously been  the  bed  of  a  stream  ages  before. 

There  is  no  marked  difference  between  the  deposit  here 
and  thousands  of  other  Drift  deposits  scattered  all  across 
the  country  in  this  latitude.  They  were  all  laid  down  in 
the  same  era,  and  by  similar  agencies.  The  fact  that  this 
particular  spot  produces  oil,  while  others  apparently  just 
as  favorably  located  do  not,  seems  to  indicate  that  the  oil 
is  not  indigenous  to  the  gravel  bed  itself.  It  is  evidently 
derived  from  some  other  source,  the  gravel  bed  acting  only 
as  a  reservoir  for  its  reception  and  storage. 

Many  stories  are  afloat  concerning  the  bursting  of  a  pipe 
line  near  these  pits,  and  the  leakage  of  storage  tanks  for- 
merly located  in  this  neighborhood ;  and  some  affirm  that 
the  oil  has  soaked  into  the  gravel  bed  from  these  sources. 
Others  contend  that  it  has  ascended  from  the  regular  oil 
sands  below  through  the  old  abandoned  bore  holes  on  the 
flat.  But  we  think  a  much  more  probable  explanation  of 
the  phenomenon  can  be  found  in  the  operations  of  natural 
agencies  alone,  unaided  by  the  accidents  or  interventions 
of  men. 

The  gravel  bed  (the  thickness  of  which  is  not  at  present 
known,  as  it  has  not  been  dug  through,)  is  capped  by  a 
sheet  of  tough,  impervious  blue  clay,  varying  from  two  feet 
to  twelve  feet  or  more  in  thickness.  This  clay  seems  to 
cover  the  gravel  bed  like  a  hood,  and  the  retention  of  oil 
in  the  gravel  bed  is  no  doubt  due  to  the  peculiar  shape  of 
the  clay  sheet. 

Oil  formerly  issued  with  the  waters  of  springs,  and  through 
the  gravel  of  the  creek  bottom,  in  many  places  along  the 
valley  of  Oil  creek.  The  Drake  well  and  some  others  of 
the  early  wells  struck  oil  before  reaching  the  first  oil  sand. 
But  it  is  now  well  understood  that  this  oil  came  up  from 
the  first  oil  sand  which  was  in  these  places  surcharged  with 
oil.  In  the  same  manner,  no  doubt,  the  gravel  beds  have 
been  supplied  with  oil.  The  first  oil  sand  lies,  as  has  been 
stated,  only  50  feet  below  the  bottom  of  the  drift  deposit. 
For  ages  the  oil  has  been  slowly  escaping  into  the  drift  and 
working  its  way  to  the  surface.  In  the  locality  of  the 


426  III.      REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

gravel  pits  it  was  obstructed  in  its  passage  to  the  present 
surface  of  the  Watson  flats  by  an  impervious  sheet  of  clay 
lying  immediately  over  a  good  deposit  of  coarse  sand  or 
gravel.  In  this  almost  hermetically  sealed  reservoir  it  has 
collected  and  has  here  remained  until  now  set  free  by  the 
piercing  of  the  clay  hood  above  it. 

How  considerable  the  deposit  of  oil  may  be  in  this  locality 
of  course  no  one  can  tell.  The  agencies  depositing  the  clay 
and  gravel  were  wide-spread  and  general  in  their  action, 
but  extremely  variable  in  their  local  results.  An  examina- 
tion of  any  railway  cutting  through  a  gravel  bank  will  illus- 
trate this.  Small  bowlders,  gravel,  sand  and  clay,  will  be 
found  in  many  cases  to  be  almost  indiscriminately  mixed, 
and  no  one  class  of  material  can  be  traced  for  any  great 
distance.  We  should  not,  therefore,  expect  this  peculiar 
structure  of  a  clay-capped  sand  bed,  which  seems  to  be  the 
requisite  basis  of  a  paying  gravel  well,  to  extend  continu- 
ously over  a  very  wide  area.  The  whole  question  may  be 
briefly  resolved  thus : 

Given  the  clay-sheet  without  the  sand-bed  ;  the  sand-bed 
without  the  clay-sheet ;  or  the  clay  and  sand  in  reversed 
positions,  and  no  oil  could  be  obtained.  So  also  given  the 
clay  and  sand  in  good  condition  and  proper  position,  but 
in  a  locality  where  there  is  no  oil-producing  sand  beneath, 
and  the  same  result  would  follow. 

If  then  the  success  of  a  gravel  well  depends  upon  the 
rare  and  rather  accidental  conjunction  of  the  several  neces- 
sary conditions  above  mentioned,  we  need  not  apprehend 
any  danger  of  an  overflowing  of  the  storage  tanks,  or  an 
overstocking  of  the  oil  supply  from  the  products  of  these 
drift  deposit  wells. 

§  681.  Area  of  the  Gr ami  pit  Oil  Pool. 

The  location  and  surroundings  of  the  gravel-pits  may  be 
seen  by  reference  to  Plate  XIX.  The  Drake  well  is  not 
noted  on  this  map ;  it  should  be  on  the  island  in  Oil  creek, 
at  the  entrance  of  the  highlands  below  the  intersection  of 
Pine  creek. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  productive  spot  is  on  the  nose 


GKAVEL  PIT  OIL  WELLS.  III.  427 

of  a  point  projecting  down  into  the  old  valley ;  and  proba- 
bly the  peculiar  position  of  this  head-land  in  relation  to  the 
transporting  currents  of  the  glacial  period  caused  the  de- 
posit in  this  place  of  coarse  quicksand,  which  contains  oil, 
and  afterward  covered  it  with  the  irregular  hood-cap  of  clay; 
for  the  two  deposits  seem  to  thus  lie  in  conjunction  only  on 
this  point.  The  thickest  part  of  the  clay  is  on  the  point  of 
the  hill,  and  it  thins  and  slopes  rapidly  towards  the  flats. 
The  shallowest  pit  was  iifteen  feet  deep,  with  only  two  feet 
of  clay — the  deepest  fifty-two  feet,  with  fifteen  feet  of  clay. 
An  abrupt  rise  in  the  surface  accounts  for  the  difference  in 
depth. 

A  superficies  of  a  little  over  one  acre  will  cover  all  the 
productive  territory  at  this  date,  (Dec.  1879,)  and  on  this 
small  area  about  one  hundred  pits  have  been  sunk — 70  on 
the  flat  below  the  plank-road,  and  30  above  it — those  on  the 
lower  side  having  been  the  most  productive,  probably  owing 
to  the  fact  that  they  were  first  opened.  Many  other  pits 
were  dug  outside  of  this  cluster,  but  no  indication  of  oil 
was  found. 

§681.  Production  and  Value  of  the  Gravel  pits. 

From  the  Pioneer  well — dug  at  a  cash  outlay  of  six  dol- 
lars, and  opened  on  the  6th  day  of  April,  1877 — four  hun- 
dred and  seventy-three  barrels  of  oil  were  sold  up  to  the 
30th  of  June.  At  first  it  only  brought  light  oil  prices  (about 
$2  50)  notwithstanding  its  gravity  of  32°  ;  but  after  its  true 
value  became  known  it  readily  commanded  the  same  price 
as  other  heavy  oils,  and  was  shipped  to  the  lubricating  re- 
fineries of  Franklin  and  Rochester,  at  $4  90  per  barrel. 

Supposing  the  oil  from  this  well  to  have  averaged  $3  50 
per  barrel,  it  is  easy  to  see  how  enticing  the  "dug- well  oil 
business"  would  appear  to  the  many  who  possessed  the 
necessary  capital  to  engage  in  it — muscle  and  a  pick  and 
shovel — when  they  figured  up  something  like  the  following : 

473  barrels  of  oil,  @  $3  50= $1,655  50 

Less  i  royalty, 413  88 

Gross  receipts,    .    .   . $1,241  62 


428  III.      EEPOBT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Cost  of  well, $6  00 

Cost  of  pump,  tank,  &c.,  say   .....      50  00 
Cost  of  pumping  85  days,  say 170  00 

226  00 


Net  profits  for  3  months'  work, $1,015  62 

It  was  this  feature  of  little  outlay  with  quick  returns  and 
large  profits,  that  drew  so  many  people  to  the  spot,  and 
created  such  an  unusual  excitement.  So  eager  was  the 
crowd  to  get  a  foothold  within  the  charmed  district  that 
leases  twenty  feet  square  were  readily  taken  at  $20  bonus 
and  half  the  oil,  and  larger  ones  in  proportion. 

A  steam  engine  was  soon  brought  into  requisition,  and 
the  pits  were  so  crowded  that  twenty-five  pumps  could  be 
operated  with  it  at  once.  The  net- work  of  vibrating  walk- 
ing-beams, joined  together  in  every  conceivable  manner  by 
bolts  and  links,  or  tied  by  ropes,  formed  when  in  motion 
one  of  the  most  novel  sights  ever  seen  in  any  country. 
The  ludicrous  movements  of  these  pumping  arrangements, 
suggested  in  some  one's  mind  a  resemblance  to  a  mass  of 
huge  disabled  grasshoppers  writhing  and  kicking  upon  the 
ground,  and  thereupon  the  place  was  immediately  dubbed 
"Grasshopper  City." 

The  "city,"  however,  like  its  namesake,  was  destined  to 
be  short-lived.  With  the  early  frosts  of  October  it  per- 
ished. On  the  10th  of  August  the  Oil  Oily  Derrick,  after 
a  careful  examination  of  the  field,  reported  23  wells  pump- 
ing, with  an  aggregate  production  of  170  barrels  per  day, 
and  46  pits  in  different  stages  of  completion.  But  by  the 
middle  of  October  everything  was  quiet ;  a  few  old  wells 
were  pumping,  but  probably  the  whole  output  did  not  then 
exceed  40  barrels  a  day. 

In  1878,  Messrs.  Potts  &  Johnson  having  secured  control 
of  all  the  desirable  territory,  managed,  by  judicious  pump- 
ing and  frequent  additions  of  new  wells,  to  keep  up  an  av- 
erage production  of  about  eight  barrels  per  day  for  nearly 
the  whole  year;  but  the  following  season  the  new  wells 
were  more  uncertain  and  the  yield  of  oil  gradually  declined 
to  almpst  nothing. 


GEAVEL  PIT  OIL  WELLS.  III.  429 

No  accurate  account  has  been  kept  of  the  quantity  of  oil 
actually  drawn  from  this  pool,  which  may  be  said  to  have 
been  practically  exhausted  by  the  winter  of  1879,  but  from 
the  best  information  to  be  had  it  appears  to  have  been  from 
ten  to  twelve  thousand  barrels. 

The  largest  well  in  the  pool  is  said  to  have  yielded  30 
barrels  of  oil  the  first  day  ;  but  they  all  ran  down  rapidly 
and  very  few  of  them  paid  to  pump  longer  than  three  months, 
notwithstanding  that  they  could  be  kept  profitably  in  mo- 
tion if  they  produced  only  a  fraction  of  a  barrel  of  oil.  As 
the  oil  came  in  with  an  inexhaustible  supply  of  fresh  water 
it  was  useless  to  pump  longer  when  the  water  once  became 
clear. 

In  digging  one  of  the  deep  pits  a  pebble  sandstone  five 
feet  thick  and  entirely  covering  the  bottom  of  the  hole, 
was  encountered  at  a  depth  of  25  feet  from  the  surface.  It 
had  to  be  drilled  and  blasted  the  same  as  fixed  i*ock,  but  it 
was  not  in  place,  being  evidently  a  large  block  of  Church 
run  conglomerate  slipped  from  the  hilltop  half  a  mile  away. 
The  edge  of  the  same  block  was  supposed  to  have  been 
struck  in  another  excavation  a  rod  or  more  from  this  one. 

In  another  pit  at  a  depth  of  20  feet  the  workmen  passed 
through  a  one  foot  layer  of  black  peaty  material  contain- 
ing matted  masses  of  small  twigs  and  rootlets.  A  trace  of 
this  was  only  seen  in  one  other  well  although  there  were 
several  that  should  have  shown  it  if  it  had  been  of  any  con- 
siderable extent. 


§  682.  Powers'  Corners  district  in  Ohio. 

The  Oil  sand  in  this  section  is  about  60'  thick — in  layers 
of  varying  character.  In  some  wells  the  oil  is  found  at  three 
points  in  the  rock,  at  say  5',  40',  and  55'.  The  wells  are  gen- 
erally short  lived,  but  some  exceptional  ones  have  produced 
lightly  for  6  or  7  years.  A  well  pumping  100  barrels  dur- 
ing its  life  is  considered  an  average  well.  One  of  the  most 
prolific  wells  in  the  district — the  Thompson  well,  near  Pow- 
-is  said  to  have  produced  from  1800  to  2200 


430  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

barrels.  But  this  was  one  of  the  first  wells,  and  none  like 
it  have  since  been  found.  The  oil  brings  from  $12  to  $15 
per  barrel  of  40  gallons,  (September,  1878.) 

About  1  mile  north  of  Grey  well  three  shafts  were  dug 
during  the  excitement,  about  the  year  1865.  A  drift  was 
run  in  the  oil  rock  from  No.  1  north  to  No.  2  about  150', 
and  also  part  of  the  way  from  No.  2  westerly  to  No.  3,  the 
interval  between  No.  2  and  No.  3  being  about  300'.  The 
design  was  to  expose  a  large  surface  of  the  oil  rock,  and 
thus  secure  a  greater  flow  of  oil.  But  it  was  a  failure  finan- 
cially. The  amount  of  oil  is  limited — it  is  heavy  and  almost 
free  from  gas,  and  can  only  be  obtained  by  washing  the 
rock  as  it  were  with  water.  Some  of  the  wells  furnish  all 
the  water  a  4"  pump  can  handle.  The  oil  comes  in  globules 
with  the  water,  and  collects  at  the  top  of  the  tank  while 
the  water  is  let  off  at  the  bottom.  When  the  water  comes 
clear  the  well  is  abandoned,  as  it  is  an  indication  that  the 
rock  has  been  washed  out  within  the  reach  of  that  well. 
Then  another  hole  is  put  down,  and  the  current  directed  in 
that  direction,  and  another  portion  of  rock  is  cleaned,  thus 
the  whole  territory  is  gone  over,  some  farms  having  had  as 
many  as  80  wells  put  down  upon  them.  The  old  wells  are 
sometimes  re-tubed  and  pumped  the  second  time,  produc- 
ing in  some  instances  quite  an  amount  of  oil.  The  effect  of 
these  drill  holes  so  thickly  scattered  over  the  tongue  of 
clayey  land  between  Grand  river  and  Mosquito  creek, 
has  been  to  much  improve  the  soil  for  agricultural  pur- 
poses. The  wells  afford  a  ready  exit  for  the  surface  water, 
and  a  system  of  drainage  has  thus  unintentionally  been 
established  of  nojittle  value  to  the  farmers  of  that  section. 

The  oil  appears  to  come  into  the  wells  from  a  band  of 
coarse  gray  sandstone,  described  by  those  who  have  seen 
it  in  the  shafts  and  drifts,  as  "honey-combed."  It  is  not 
more  than  from  one  to  three  feet  thick,  and  lies  between 
bands  of  flags  and  fucoidal  sandy  shales.  The  pieces  of 
sandstone  thrown  out  on  the  surface  weather  white,  with 
iron  specs  thickly  scattered  over  their  surfaces.  On  break- 
ing them  they  are  found  to  be  still  saturated  with  oil  and 
give  out  an  unmistakable  odor  of  petroleum.  The  wells 


TKUXALL  WELL.  III.  431 

show  that  the  rock  dips  quite  strongly  to  the  south,  or  per 
haps  a  little  west  of  south,  and  the  best  wells  have  been  on 
the  higher  part  of  the  rock  or  north  end  of  the  district. 


Grey   Well. 

§  683.  On  road  running  south  from  Powers'  Corners,  1  m.  N.  of  its  intersec- 
tion with  the  road  running  west  from  Baconsburg,  Trumbull  countjr,  Ohio. 
Authority,  Mr.  Grey. 

Elevation  of  well  mouth  above  tide,  (barometer,) 940 

Conductor,  14  to  14 

Blue  slate  and  shale 33  to  47  =  893 

In  sand, 4  to  51 

Pumping  about  \\  barrels  per  day.  An  old  well  recently 
re-opened,  (September,  1878.) 

A  deep  well  was  put  down  on  the  Cowdry  farm  about 
two  miles  south  of  Powers'  Corners.  The  following  record 
from  memory,  by  one  of  the  drillers,  indicates  the  charac- 
ter of  the  formation  in  this  section : 


§  684.  Cowdry  farm  well,  Deep  well. 

Elevation  of  well  mouth  above  tide,  about 940 

Conductor,          10  to      10  = 

Blue  sandy  shale, 35  to     45  =  895 

Bereagrit  (oil  sand),     110  to  155  = 

Blue  shale, 580  to  735  == 

Sandstone, 2  to  737  = 

"Soapstone,"     198  to  935  = 

Sandstone, • 3  to  933  = 

"Soapstone,"     176  to  1114  = 

No  red  rock  was  found,  and  the  drilling  below  Berea  grit 
was  all  of  a  homogeneous  character.  No  oil  below  Berea 
grit. 


§  685.   Truxall  Well,  \  mile  south  of  Powers  Corners. 

Elevation  of  well  mouth  above  tide,  about 945 

Conductor, 10  to  10  = 

Flags,  3  in.  to  1  ft.  thick, 8  to  18  = 

Bluish  shale, 12  to  30  ==  915 

SS.,  honeycombed  and  creviced  (not  through), 8  to  38  = 

In  this  neighborhood  the  drill  has  been  sunk  70'  in  the 
sand  without  going  through  it. 


432  III.   REPORT  OF  PBOGEESS.   JOHN  F.  CAELL. 

Water  Wells  at  Warren,  Ohio. 
Eagle  House  Well. 

§  686.  Elevation  of  well  mouth  above  tide,  about    ....  890' 

Conductor  (set  in  an  old  water  well,) 25  to   25 

Slate  with  hard  shells,          85  to  110 

SS.,  white,  fine,  solid,  no  seams  saturated  with  oil  but  water 

fresh  and  good,      .   .  40  to  150 

Shales  and  slates  free  from  shells, 250  to  400 

No  red  rock  in  well.  At  313'  heavy  flow  of  gas  for  three 
days,  then  ceased.  Some  salt  water  below  gas  vein.  Water 
now  stands  within  4'  feet  of  surface  and  is  excellent  for  or- 
dinary use.  Diameter  of  drill  hole  3". 


Van  Gorder  Well. 

§  687.  Elevation  of  well  mouth  above  tide,  about 890' 

Conductor,  surface  clay  and  gravel, 20  to   20 

Hard  flaggy  slates,    ..       20to40 

Soapstone,     20  to   60 

Hard  slates, 40  to  100 

Slate  with  some  pebbles, 33  to  133 

SS.,  white,  (not  through,)     20  to  153 

No  red,  sandpumpings  grayish-blue  to  white,  water  stands 
within  6'  of  top.     Remarkably  soft  and  pure. 


Chase  Well,  at  the  National  Hotel. 

§  688.  Elevation  of  well  mouth  above  tide,  about 890 

Conductor,  surface  clay  and  gravel, 23  to   23 

Sandy  shale, 60  to   83 

"  Loadstone,"  . 1  to   84 

Soapstone, 46  to  130 

SS.,  white  and  fine,  (not  through,) 14  to  144 

Copious  supply  of  soft  water,  used  in  preference  to  rain 
water  for  washing  and  all  hotel  purposes  and  standing  con- 
stantly within  5'  of  the  well  mouth. 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

Notes  on  various  building  stone  quarries  in  Ohio. 
Nelson  Ledge. 

§  689.  In  the  northeast  corner  of  Portage  county,  Ohio, 
about  If  miles  northeast  of  Nelson  Centre.  Elevation  of 
base  (by  barometer)  955'  above  ocean. 

A  reproduction  of  a  Pennsylvania  or  New  York  ' '  Rock 
City,"  with  the  exception  that  the  exposure  lies  but  a  few 
feet  above  the  level  of  the  plain  below  it,  and  not  conspicu- 
ously on  a  ridge  or  hilltop,  as  is  the  case  in  Penna.  and  N. 
York.  From  50'  to  60'  of  rock  exposed  at  the  ledge,  con- 
glomeritic  in  places  from  top  to  bottom.  Pebbles  pea  to 
hazelnut,  ovoidal,  and  of  same  aspect  as  those  of  Garland, 
Olean,  &c.  Many  of  the  pebbles  are  crushed  and  fractured 
as  if  the  mass  had  been  subjected  to  heavy  pressure,  and 
the  weaker  material  had  yielded  to  the  stronger.  The  in- 
terspaces between  the  pebbles  are  but  partially  filled  with 
sand  and  clay.  This  fact  no  doubt  accounts  in  part  for  the 
crushing  of  the  least  resistant  quartz — one  pebble  ground 
directly  upon  another,  the  cementing  material  being  too 
scanty  to  fill  the  interstices  and  assist  in  equalizing  the 
pressure.  It  also  accounts  for  the  rapid  disintegration  of 
the  rock  when  exposed  to  the  action  of  moisture  and  frost. 

So  porous  a  conglomerate  as  this  is  seldom  seen. 

Other  sandrocks,  sometimes  conglomeritic,  are  seen  in 
different  exposures,  extending  up  100'  or  more  above  the 
top  of  the  ledge.  These  are  massive,  frequently  obliquely 
bedded,  and  precisely  similar  in  character  to  rocks  of  the 
same  horizon  in  Penna.  The  conglomerate  may  be  said 
then,  to  be  about  150'  in  thickness  in  this  locality,  but  it  is 
probably  in  two  or  three  bands  with  thin  local  partings  of 
shale.  A  constant  and  copious  rain  during  my  visit  to  the 
28  III.  (433) 


434  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

ledge  prevented  as  full  an  examination  of  these  points  as 
was  desired. 

§  690.  Quarry  in  Fowler  township,  O. 
(About  1£  m.  S.  E.  of  Baconsburg. ) 

A  massive  coarse  firm  sandstone,  excellent  for  architec- 
ural  and  engineering  purposes,  in  courses  from  2'  to  6'  thick. 
Some  of  them  olive  gray,  others  yellow  and  iron  stained. 
About  20'  seen.  Elevation  of  top  1130'.  No  fossils  noted. 
Escarpment  faces  the  west.  Top  oxydized  and  sharply  gla- 
ciated. Direction  of  striae  S.  S.  E.  Large  granitic  bowld- 
ers along  the  face  of  the  escarpment. 

§  691.  Burgliill  Conglomerate. 

On  farm  of  Mr.  Hayes  half  a  mile  south  of  depot.  Ele- 
vation of  top  about  1125',  bottom  1100'.  A  fine  exposure 
covering  a  large  area.  Pebbles  ovoidal  from  the  size  of  a 
grain  of  wheat  to  a  hazelnut.  About  25'  of  cliff  exposed, 
but  probably  more  below.  The  rock  is  broken  in  large 
masses  and  scattered  to  the  north  and  west  below  the  face 
of  escarpment.  On  the  southeast  slope  of  the  hill  the  rock 
is  bare  in  many  places  and  always  plainly  glaciated,  the 
grooves  running  with  the  trend  of  the  slope,  about  S.  S.  E. 

A  similar  exposure  may  be  seen  about  2  miles  E.  of  Burg- 
hill  on  the  farm  of  Mr.  Turnkey.  It  caps  the  ridge  east  of 
the  Pymatuning  and  forms  perpendicular  cliffs  20'  to  25'  in 
height.  Elevation  of  top  about  1200'.  From  the  topogra- 
phy below  this  ledge  one  would  infer  that  another  sandrock 
lies  a  short  distance  below  it. 

§  692.  FoulJce1  s  quarry. 
(One  mile  south  of  Mossmantown,  Mercer  Co.,  Pa.) 

Top  1290';  12'  to  15'  thick. 

Coarse  yellowish  soft  sandstone  in  massive  layers  from  4' 
to  5'  thick.  Of  irregular  fracture  ;  iron  stained  on  top  and 
in  the  seams  ;  containing  scattered  pebbles,  small  and  ovoid- 
al, with  clay  balls  and  iron  concretious.  Some  impressions 
of  carboniferous  plants.  Glacial  scratches  on  top.  Escarp- 


BUILDING  STOISTE  QUAKKIES.  III.  435 

ment  faces  the  west  and  extends  south  a  mile  or  more,  bor- 
dering the  level  drift-filled  plain  below.  Large  granitic 
bowlders  lie  scattered  over  this  ridge,  but  principally  along 
the  escarpment,  and  intermixed  with  well  rounded  bowlders 
of  this  local  sandstone. 


§  693.  Austin  Flag  quarry. 
(3  miles  JV.  of  Warren,  Ohio.} 

Elevation  of  top  above  tide,  (aneroid,) 915 

Drift  clay  overlying  the  quarry,  = 8' 

Flags,  blue  and  gray,  rather  irregularly  bedded, 2'  6'' 

Olive  shales,  friable,  ....  2'  6" 

Flags,  blue  and  gray,  1"  to  8"  thick, 2'  — 

Black  shale,  containing  Lingula  melia,  seen, 2'  — 

This  quarry  is  the  most  remarkable  one  of  the  kind  I 
have  ever  seen.  The  upper  band  furnishes  some  good  flag- 
ging, but  it  also  works  up  nicely  into  blocks  for  street  pave- 
ments, for  which  it  is  largely  used.  This  stratum  alone 
would  make  a  valuable  quarry. 

But  it  is  the  lower  stratum  which  has  given  the  quarry  its 
wide-spread  reputation. 

The  stone  is  reached  by  stripping.  The  surface  clay,  upper 
flags  and  shales,  have  been  removed,  and  several  acres  of 
the  lower  band  lie  open  to  daylight.  A  stone  floor  stretches 
out  over  the  whole  area  more  smooth  and  uniform  than  the 
best  laid  pavement  in  a  city.  One  could  hardly  believe 
that  any  sediment  could  be  laid  down  over  large  spaces  in  so 
complete  a  plane.  Here  are  2'  of  perfect  flags,  lying  in  from 
6  to  10  courses,  and  separated  from  each  other  by  invisible 
parallel  planes  of  division ;  and  these  lines  of  separation 
.are  so  complete  that  the  quarrying  of  the  stone  becomes  a 
mere'matter  of  cutting  out  the  squares  into  the  dimensions 
required. 

Large  areas  a  rod  wide,  perhaps,  and  four  or  five  rods 
long,  are  sometimes  cut  loose  from  the  main  body  by 
wedges  inserted  at  short  intervals  along  a  line  and  driven 
simultaneously ;  and  when  the  connection  is  thus  broken 
the  mass  moves  as  readily  on  the  bed-plate  as  the  top  plank 
in  a  pile  would  move  upon  the  one  under  it. 


436  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

There  is  little  or  no  waste  in  this  lower  stratum,  every 
layer  being  perfect.  They  vary  in  thickness  in  different 
portions  of  the  quarry  from  one  inch  to  eight  inches. 

The  top  of  the  upper  stratum  is  smoothed  and  polished 
in  some  places  as  nicely  as  any  stone  worker  could  do  it  by 
rubbing  two  plane  surfaces  together ;  in  others  sharply  cut 
striae  run  in  parallel  lines  across  the  polished  surface  as 
nearly  as  could  be  ascertained  in  a  S.  S.  E.  direction. 

There  is  a  uniform  dip  to  the  south,  making  the  drainage 
very  easy.  In  opening  the  drain  2'  of  black  shale  is  dis- 
closed. 

This  shale  is  very  hard,  requiring  nearly  as  much  labor  in 
its  excavation  as  if  it  were  ordinary  sandstone;  but  on 
exposure  to  air  and  moisture  soon  crumbles  into  a  blue- 
black  clay.  Some  layers  of  this  shale  contain  immense 
numbers  of  Lingula  melia,  principally  in  broken  fragments. 

The  flags  themselves  are  said  to  be  remarkably  void  of  fos- 
sils. Occasionally  a  single  shell  has  been  found,  and  sev- 
eral small  beds  of  apparently  drifted  coal  plants  have  been 
noticed,  but  they  are  not  of  usual  occurrence.  The  only 
fossil  seen  at  the  quarry  was  a  small  fragment  of  lepido- 
dendron  ?  about  six  inches  in  length,  water- worn,  and  im- 
perfect. 

About  two  miles  S.  E.  of  Warren,  on  the  Howland  road, 
at  an  elevation  of  915±,  a  band  of  flags  shows  itself  in  the 
roadway  apparently  from  5  to  10  feet  thick.  This  would 
appear  to  be  a  higher  band  than  the  Austin  quarry,  and 
affords  another  proof  of  the  variable  character  of  the  Cuy- 
ahoga  shales  in  this  section. 


§694.  Section  at  Oil  City,  Venango  county,  Pa.* 

S.  S.,  massive,  in  hill  top ;  crops  out  in  cliffs ;  elevation  not  accurately  as- 
certained, but  the  top  of  the  hill  is  about  1515' ;  and  the  base  of  the  rock  is 
between  1350'  and  1400'  above  ocean. 

?  Unseen,  between 100'  and  150'  to  1241 

SS.,  beds  2' to  4' thick,  parted  by  shale  and  slate,  20')  ^  to  1206 
SS.,  massive  and  hard, 15'  > 

*  By  H.  M.  Chance. 


BUILDING  STONE  QUARRIES.  III.  437 

Slate,     5  to  1201 

SS.,  massive  and  hard, 6  to  1195 

Shale,  slaty  or  shaly  slate,  with  some  sandy  layers,  .   .  21  to  1174 

SS.,  hard  and  fine-grained  beds,  3''  to  2'  thick,  ....  11  to  1163 

Shale ;  sandy,  greenish-gray, 19  to  1144 

?  Unexposed,        96  to  1048 

SS.,  fine-grained  beds  1'  to  3  thick,  10'  exposed,  ...  10  to  1038 

Shales,  sandy,  thin-bedded  and  fine-grained,     ....  8  to  1030 
SS.,  thin-bedded  and  fine-grained,  with  shale,         j 

(forms  roof  of  L.  S.  &  M.  S.  RR.  tunnel,)  .   .     6'  V  23  to  1007 
SS.,  thin-bedded  and  fine-grained,  to  RR.  level,   17'  J 

?  Unexposed  to  river  level  (low- water), 22  to  985 


§695.  Section  at  Franklin,  Venango  county,  Pa.* 

Coal  2  miles  east  of  river,  at  elevation  of 1479 

?  Unexposed  65'-40'  dip,= 25  to  1414 

SS.,  massive  and  coarse-grained,  (about) 30  to  1384 

?  Unexposed, 104  to  1280 

SS.,  flaggy,  5  feet  exposed, 5  to  1275 

?  Unexposed, 167  to  1108 

SS.,  Bell's  quarry,         28  to  1080 

L.  S.  &  M.  S.  R.  R.  depot, —  to  1014 

A.  V.  R.  R.  depot, —  to  988 

The  top  of  the  SS.  in  the  quarry  south  of  the  Galloway 
farm  is  at  an  elevation  of  1109'.  The  rock  is  here  a  gray- 
ish drab  colored  flaggy  SS.,  rather  fine-grained,  and  split- 
ting into  plates  from  V  to  6"  in  thickness. 

SS.,  thin-bedded,  spliting  into  flags  i"  to  2"  thick, 10' 

SS.,  flaggy,  splitting  into  flags  1"  to  6"  thick, 15' 

SS.,  more  massive  than  above  (in  floor  of  quarry). 


§  696.  Section  compiled  near  Cranberry  Coal 

Ferriferous  Limestone  on  the  farm  of  Jacob  Fox,  8'  exposed. 

Elevation  of  base  of  F.  L.  above  tide=1587'. 

Exposure  of  F.  L.,  8  feet. 

Height  of  F.  L.  above  coal  bank,  at  least  74'. 

Slate,  blue,         2' 

Coal  (Clarion), 1' to   2' 

Interval  at  least,      8'  to  10' 

Sandstone    yellowish,   whitish  and    reddish    brown, 

loose  and  coarse  (inairshaft), 56'  0'' 

Slate  (inairshaft), 6' 0" 

*  By  H.  M.  Chance, 
f  By  H.  M.  Chance. 


438  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Coal;  Cranberry  Bank.     (A.  T.=1531'), 2' 

Fireclay,  varying  from, 2'  to    10' 

Sandstone  thin  bedded,  hard  and  full  of  roots,  .   .   .   .  2'   to     3' 

Shale  soft  olive, 11' 

Ball  iron  ore, 0'  4" 

Shale,        1' 

Bituminous  slaty  shale, 0'  3" 

Fireclay,  ..... 

Interval  concealed,     \  • 

Coal,  reported  4'  thick,  but  with  a  thick  parting  slate,  4' 

Fireclay  (at  least), 3' 

Sandstone  hard  (at  least  2' and  possibly), 10' 

Sandstone  thin  bedded, 2' 

Shale  soft,  about,     25' 

Sandstone  white  shaly,     4' 

Fireclay  and  shale, 5' 

Sandstone  fine  grained,  6'  to  10'  exposed. 

The  place  of  the  ferriferous  Limestone  at  the  coal  bank 
would  be  at  or  near  the  level  at  which  the  air  shaft  was 
started.  In  this  shaft  the  coal  was  struck  82'  below  the 
surface.  The  section  reported  is — 

Surface  clay, 20' 

Sandstone, 56' 

Slate, 6' 

Coal 2' 

The  Ferriferous  limestone  was  not  found  here  ;  but  the 
blossom  of  a  coal  is  reported  as  having  been  found  a  short 
distance  off.  This  is  evidently  the  Clarion  coal  which  un- 
derlies the  limestone  at  the  limestone  workings. 

Between  the  coal  bank  and  the  limestone  quarry  a  ridge 
intervenes  which  rises  to  1631'.  This  should  contain  the 
limestone ;  but  the  residents  in  the  vicinity  state  that  none 
has  ever  been  seen,  although  much  sought  after. 


§  697.  Note  on  Pre-glacial  erosion. 
At  the  meeting  of  the  British  Association  in  1880,  Mr. 
De  France  described  the  pre-  and  jwst-glacial  surfaces  of 
northwestern  England,  between  the  Welch  mountains  and 
the  Cumberland  lakes.  To  the  west  of  the  Pennine  chain 
of  carboniferous  hills  spread  the  plains  of  Lancashire  and 
Cheshire,  covered  with  Drift,  deep  enough  at  one  point 
(near  Ormskirk)  to  measure  230  feet. 


NOTE  ON  PKE-GLACIAL  EEOSION. 


III.  439 


The  valley  gorges  of  Cumberland  were  excavated  before 
the  Ice  age. 

Windermere  and  the  other  lakes  were  excavated  during 
the  ice  age  ;  Windermere  to  a  depth  of  230  feet,  i.  e.  100 
feet  beneath  present  sea  level. 

The  marine  Drift  covers  so  thickly  an  extensive  area  in 
Lancashire,  Cheshire  and  Flintshire  that  vales  200  feet 
deep  (like  the  Kibble  and  the  Irwell)  have  been  post-gla- 
cial excavated  in  it ;  the  lowest  places  in  the  vales  being  be- 
low present  tide  level,  showing  that  the  laud  has  more 
recently  subsided  (or  the  ocean  risen.)  In  the  Cumberland 
mountain  valleys  the  marine  Drift  no  longer  exists  (if  it 
ever  did, )  having  been  subsequently  re-excavated  and  swept 
out. 

"  A  terrace  of  post-glacial  deposits  fringes  the  glacial  area 
at,  and  often  below  (in  one  place  70')  the  sea  level,  con- 
sisting of  peat,  with  a  forest  at  the  base,  resting  on  a  ma- 
rine post-glacial  deposit."  (Report  in  Nature,  Sept.  9.) 


INDEX  TO  III. 


A.     Nominal  and  Geographical. 

Page. 

Adams  (Jas.  R.),     221 

Adamsville,  Crawford  Co., 11,  51 

Adamsville  quarry,     51,52,  54 

Adirondacks  Mountains  of  N.  Y., 377 

Agnew,  E.  J., 418 

Alabama, 387 

Albany, 421 

Allegany,  N.  Y., 379 

Allegheny  City, 391,393 

Allegheny  County, 157,405 

wells, 84,282,104,105,106,115 

East  Brady  Township, 115 

Allegheny  Mountain, 13,165 

Allegheny  River, 3  to  7,13,14,82,146,150,160,281,332 

335,339,340,343,344,346,348  to  358,360,362,377,379,388,389,391,396,409 

bed  channel, 362,388,392,394 

drainage, 352,349 

glacier 388 

headwater  branches, 4,5,335,348 

valley,  4,97,340,352,354,378,379,388,391,392,394 

water  basin,     . 393 

slope  or  fall  preglacial, 337,338,339 

ancient  floor, 337,360 

ancient  course, 367 

at  Carrollton, 333 

at  Irvineton, 333 

at  Thompson's  station, .  6,  28 

Allegheny  Township,  Westmoreland  Co.,  Leechburg  gas  well, 115 

A.  V.  RR.  depot, 140,222,437 

Allen's  creek,     152 

Allen  County,  Indiana, 381 

Alpine  glaciers,     376,386 

Ames  Manufacturing  Co.  of  Titusville, 304 

Amherst  quarries, 93,94,  96 

Andrews,  C.  M., 229 

Andrews,  Lester  B., 229 

Andrews,  Seth, 209 

Aqueduct  (Upper  French  creek), 365 

Argyle  (Level), 142,143,144 

(  441  III.  ) 


442  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Page. 
Armstrong  County,     .    .   .   .84,97,127,130,142,143,145,158,159,231,336,409,421 

Ashburner,  C.  A., 11,20,108,225 

Ashland  Township,  Clarion  County, — 

Oelschlager  well  No.  1, Ill 

Ashville,  N.  Y., 63 

Atlantic  station, 43,48,  50 

Atlantic  and  Great  Western  RR., 42,43,46,50,59,67,76,340,344 

Auglaize  County, 381 

Austin  Flagstone  quarry, 435,436 

Baconsburg, 429,434 

Bailers, 294 

Bald  Eagle  Mountain, 393 

Barnesville 349  to  353, 391 

Bates'  (F.)  section, 30 

hill 34,  33 

3,  Wiconisco  basin, 17 

Bear  lake  station, 76 

Beaver  canal, 6,365 

Beaver  city, 97,142,221 

Beaver  county, 84,157,158,159,282,394,403 

Beaver  Falls, 64,87,89,90,102,185,282,283,401 

Beaver  River, 4,5,6,87,392,393 

country, 16 

glacier, • 394 

valley, ' 14,392 

Beaver  run,     66 

Bedford  county, 19,  96 

Bell,  A.  A., ' 222 

Bell's  quarry, 437 

Bellefonte,  . 393 

Bemustown, 366 

Bennet  (Ed.)  Sheakley  Station, 100 

Bennett,  Graff  &  Go's  well,      106,111,398 

Berea,  Ohio, 94,95,  96 

quarries, 93 

Berlin's  Tavern, 415 

Big  .Bend  in  Warren  Co., 20,361 

Big  Sandy  creek, 392 

Binkard  well  No.  1,  (Fig.  20,) Ill 

Bissell  ,fe  Eveleth, 421 

Bissellfarm,  (Level,) .  357,358 

Black  River, 93,361,373 

valley  section, 96 

Black  Rock  on  Niagara  river,     150,152,153,281 

Black's  furnace  and  the  old  forge, 414,415 

Blair,  D.  R., 222 

Bleaksley  quarry, 65,66 

Blockville,  N.  Y., 63 

Blood  farm,  Avoodin  well  on, 326 

Blooming  Valley 36 

Blue  Eye  run, 3,26 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  448 

Page. 

Blue  Monday  rock, 17(1 

Blyson  run,  James  well,    ...       115 

Boggs,  J.  W .229 

Boggs,  O.  P., 229 

Booth  run, 57 

Bordwell  (E.)  farm, 72 

Boss  Well,  Criswell, 100,142 

Boughton,  (Level), 357 

Bower's  farm,  222 

Boyce,  Rawle  &  Co.,  (well), 398,419 

Boyd  Hill  well,  Fig.  31, .115,398 

Bradford,  McKean  Co., 78,79,182,334,322,323 

oil  well, 187,224,225,226 

oil  sands, 162,163,164,282,283 

oil  district 149,150,151,155,224,254,255 

oil  measures, 275 

Bradford  County,  ice  action  in, .396 

Brady's  Bend, 142,143,145 

Brady  Township,  Butler  Co., 85,86,418 

Brinker  (Jacob)  farm, 410 

Broad  mountain, 18 

Broadtop,  Huntingdon  County, 19,108,393 

Brokenstraw  creek, 3,4,6,25  to  30,68,71,150,354,391 

Brown,  A.  W., 420 

Brown,  Holmes  &  —  well  No.  1,  Cashup,  .       259 

Brownhelm,  (cliffs  bordering  the  Vermilion),       .    .    96 

Brundred  wells, 2,3,4,214,216,221,222 

Burtis  well  pool, ' 257 

Buffalo,  Corry  and  Pittsburgh  RR., 64,65 

Bullion,  Venango  County,   .   . 85,86,99,100,127,129,134,260 

Bullion  run, 86,140,144 

Burghill,      434 

Buried  valley, 29 

Burns,  gas  well, 110 

Busti,  Chautauqua  County,  N.  Y., 11 

Butler,  102 

Butler  County 75,82,88,100,127,130,158,159,177,240,244,421 

Middlesex  Township,     404 

Summit  Township, 404 

Butler,  Venango  County  line, 98 

Butler,  Clarion  oil  district, 102,113,146,155,225 

Butler,  Clarion  oil  belt, 97,98,132,139,145,147,151 

Butler  County,  "Cross  Belt," 128 

Butler  County  wells, 84,125,281 

new  pools, 260 

Caithness  flagstone,     122 

Caldwell  creek, 7,28,360,391 

Cambridge  (Level), 359,360 

Cameron  County,     11 

Canada,  Lauren tian  Mountains  of, 377,385 

"        Northern, 424 


444  III.       KEPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Page. 

Canadian  mer-de-glace 377,387 

Canadian  oil, 152,164 

Canadaway  creek, 7,346,362,363 

Canfieldwell 356,357,358,359 

Cape  Stafford, 376 

Carll,  John  H., 111,182,187,213,222,286 

Carroll  (Moravian  quarry,) 41,  67 

Carroll's  (College  Hill)  quarry, .   .    37,  38 

Carrollton, 78,79,335,336,337,340,350,389 

Carbon  Centre,  Butler  County, 100,105,127,134,142,143,144 

section,  Fig.  47,      131 

Cashup, 140,141,257,259,260 

Cassadaga  Creek, 346,351,354,363,365 

Cassadaga  lake, 3, 7,9, 340  to 346,351,352,355, 362, 363 

lake  level, 350 

Cassadaga  Valley ;  outlet;  ancient, 343;  345;  352 

Cassadaga  barrier, 363 

Catskill  mountains,         368 

Cattaraugus  County,  N.  Y., 2,13,77,124,164,333,337 

Cattaraugus  creek, 339 

Cawdor,        123 

Cemetery  (Greendale), 39 

Cemetery  run, 41 

Chance,  H.  M., 20,42,108,145,146,158,286,393,436,437 

section,      93 

survey  along  Shenango  River  valley,     91 

Chase  well,  at  the  National  Hotel, 432 

Chautauqua  basin  highland  barrier,        380,7,9,377,381,387 

Chautauqua  basin,      .   .   .    .4,5,9,345,349,351,353,354,356,366,377,386,389,392 

drainage, 333 

ancient  drainage, 339 

Chautauqua  County,  N.  Y., 11,13,57,58,66,67,68,123,152,346,351 

Chautauqua  lake 3,5,6,63,68,77,340  to344, 354, 387, 395 

Chautauqua  outlet  (old) , 390 

Chautauqua  quarry, 64,67,  70 

Cherry  run,        104 

wells,  Figs.  21,36,     111,115,118,398,412 

Chesapeake  bay,    . 5,378 

Chew  (Nesbitt)  well,  Fig.  8, 84 

Chew,  Iron  Bridge  well, 416 

Christy  run;  Gibson  well, 53;  54 

Christy's  quarry, 52,54,  55 

Church  run, 140,141,160,176,181,257,423 

oil  wells, 85,177 

section;  dip,  Fig.  72,     179;  139 

Cincinnati  anticlinal, 9,278,369 

Citizens'  oil  well, 40 

Clapp  Farm, 140,141 

Clappville, 356,360,366 

Clarendon, 350,391 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  445 

Page. 

Clarion  County, 100 

104,111,115,127,130,142,158,159,177,212,225,244,410,413,414,415,421 

Clarion-Butler  oil  belt, 97,98,113,149,155 

Clarion  oil  wells, 84,111,112,115,117,118,125,190,225,224,260 

Clarion  River, 115,142 

Cleveland, 96,361,368 

Clinton  County, 13,108,393 

Clinton  Township,  Venango  Co., 85,105 

Clintonville, 86,98,139,140,141,144 

Clymer  well, 75 

Coal  Pit  section, 44 

Coburn  gas  well  at  Fredonia,  N.  Y., 152,153 

Cochran, 337 

Coffee  creek, 76 

Colburn,  (Mr.,) 153 

Cold  Spring, 337,340,342 

College  Hill  &  quarries,  Meadville, 36  to  42 

Colorado,         7,85,139,140,141,144,160 

Columbia  Hill,  Butler  county, 98,100,127,134,142,143 

Columbia  Oil  company, 216,112,214,218,222 

Columbus  well, 75 

Conewango  creek, 3,4,68,338  to  342,348  to  354,391 

Conewango  Valley, 6,340,342,343 

Conglomerate  ridge, 358 

Conkle,  F.  A., 404,405 

Conneaut  barrier, 362 

Conneaut  lake, 5  to  8,43,44,358  to  366 

Conneaut  marsh  and  swamp, ....  6 ,    7 

Conneaut  creek  basin, 4,5,6,  to  9,339,356  to  365 

Conneaut  outlet,       3,43,46, 356  to  362 

Conneaut  Township,  Crawford  Co.,     395 

Conneautee  Lake,        360 

Conneautville  oil  well, 365 

Connoquenessing  River, 392 

Corry  in  Erie  county,     6,75,344 

Cotter  farm, 27,  29 

Coudersport, 5 

Cove  Hollow  well, 417,416,398,  84 

Cowdry  farm  well, 431 

Cranberry  Coal  Bank, 437 

Cranberry  swamp,       349,350,391 

Cranberry  Township,  Venango  Co., 98,111,112 

Crawford  County, 85,94,95,125,128,395 

line;  geology, 365,  33 

highlands  of  Southern, 159 

cliffs, 159 

coal  beds, 14,  43 

oil  wells, 85,282 

quarries, 69 

Report,      11 

Crawfords's  Corners, 98 


446  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Page. 

Criswell  City,  Armstrong  Co., 128,134,142,143 

Criswell  wells, 100,210 

Crooked  creek, 3,5,6,43,50,  52 

valley, 51 

section, 51 

Crooked  River  (old  valley), 397 

Cross  Farm,  Clintonville,     140 

Grouse,  or  Mullingar  run,     28,360,391 

Cuba,  N.  Y., 396 

Cummings  No.  1,  Criswell, 100 

Cutlery  works  of  the  Economy  Society, 401 

Cuyahoga  creek, 360,368,373,392 

Cuyahoga  Valley, 94,95,361 

Dauphin, 17 

Dayton,     351 

Deer  Creek, 112,414 

De  France  (Mr.), 438 

De  Grolier, 324,333 

Delemater  gas  well, 110 

Dennis  (C.  W.)  &  Co., 224,225 

Dennis  oil  well, 78,224  to  228 

Dennis  run,  deep  gorges, 160 

Dennison,  J., 55 

Detroit  river, 361 

Devlin  &  Dougherty, , 198,209 

Dexterville, 343 

Deyoe,  R.  E., 221 

Dillworth  &  Kirk, .   .  404 

Dimick,  Geo.  H., 416,417 

Dodge,  C.  A., 12 

Dogtown, 142,144 

Donegal  Township,  Butler  County, 104,105,168 

Doolittle, 66 

Dougherty, , 222 

Dougherty*  Devlin, 196,209 

Dougherty  farm,  Fairview  Township,  Butler  Co., .198,209 

Dougherty  well  No.  2, 198,169,198,209 

Drake  well, 421,422,425,426 

Dranse  river. 385 

Dry  run  (junction), 29 

Dunkard  creek  oil  field, 150,157,281 

Dunkirk  harbor, 346,391 

Dutchman's  run, 349,350 

Eagle  House  well, 432 

East  Brady  Township,  Allegheny  County, 115 

East  Cleveland  quarries, 96,  97 

East  Fallowfield  township, 43 

East  Oil  creek, 7 

Eastman  (J.)  house, 34 

Economy  well  No.  2,      401,84,185,398 

Economy  Society  cutlery  works, 401,403 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  447 

Page. 

Edenburg 133,178,134,142,182,187,213  to  222 

wells,     220,100,112,187,213,222 

Elk  County  Report, 11 

Elk  Township,  Clarion  county,     98,112,414 

Ellicottville, 58,  77 

Ellis  (or  Thorp)  quarry, 37,  42 

Ellory  Centre, 63 

Elyria, 94,  96 

Emlenton, 98,134,140,222,337 

Erie, 110 

Erie  County, •. 5,65,67,68,124 

Report, 11 

quarries, 66,  69 

Erie  County,  N.  Y., 150 

Erie  Extension  Canal, 6 

Erie  RR.  valley, 378,379 

Escher,  M.,  . 386 

Etah  (glacier  near), 375,376 

Eureka  oil  well, 71,73,76,  77 

Evans  &  Co., 198,209 

Evans  well  No.  21,  Fig.  19, 198,100,111,117,134,189,200,209 

Evansburg;  station,        ' 43,  85 

Eveleth  &  Bissell, 421 

Fagundus, 139tol41,160 

Fairview  (Sutton  No.  4) 100,134,142,143 

Fairview  Township,  Butler  County, 104,105,194,196,198,200,202.204 

Falconers,  Chautauqua  County,  N.  Y., 340, 342  to 346, 348, 354 

Farrentown, 142,143,144 

Fee,  Wm., 209 

Fentonville,  N.  Y.  (well  in  Warren  Co.,  Pa.),  .    .  282,338,342,343,345,350,351 

Fontaine  &  White, 156 

Forbes  (Prof.), 376 

Forest  County, 11,20,159,225,337,349 

Fort  Wayne, 381 

Foster  (section)  Fig.  42, 129,134,140,141,144,337 

Foulke's  quarry  in  Mercer  County,  Pa., 56,57,434 

Fowler  Township,  Ohio,  quarry, 434 

Fox.(Jacob)  farm, 437 

Foxburg,      133,134,142,144,145,150,350 

Franklin,  .  5,7,20,104,112,141,160,249,337,348,356,357,358,362,366,392,427,437 

wells, 111,117 

A.  V.  RR.  depot, 140 

Frazer  well, 181,182 

Frazier  (Thompson), 210 

Frederick,       100,134,142,143 

Fredonia,  N.  Y., ',   .110,152,153,164 

Freehold  Township, * 23,  25 

French  creek, 3,5,7,8,20,36,40,41,67,68,344,356  to  361,365,366 

Village,     '  ....    96 

Fronsinger,  Martinsburg, 142,143,144 

Galloway  farm  (quarry  S.  of), 437 


448  III.   KEPOKT  OF  PEOGEESS.   JOHN  F.  CAELL. 

Page. 

Garland,    6,23,26,27,28,58,60,85,125,391,433 

quarries, 26  to  28 

Gas  City  (Pool  oil  at), 98 

Gealy  Farm,  Bullion  Eun, 140 

Geauga  County,  Ohio,  Little  Mountain,     94 

Geauga  Township, 56 

Geikie    (Prof.),      122 

Genesee  Co.,  (N.  Y.),  LeEoy, 152 

Genesee  river, 5,58,378,396 

Genesee  valley, 388,389 

Gibbs  &  Sterrett  Manufacturing  Co.  of  Titusville 291 

Gibon's  oil  well, 53,55 

Grace  &  Criswell,      210 

Graff,  Bennet  &  Go's  well,  Fig.  18, 105,115,398,405,407,408 

Grampians, 123 

Grand  river, 361,373,392,430 

Grant  Station  A.  and  G.  W.  ER., 59,344 

"Grasshopper  City," 422,428 

Great  Belt  City, 150,281,404 

Great  Bend, 336  to  339,348,349,352  to  355 

Great  Valley, 77,389,390 

Greece  City, 100,128,134,135,142,143,145 

Greendale  cemetry  (Eavine  E.  of) 39 

Greene  County, 150,156,157,158 

Greenland  (North), 375 

Greenville  in  Mercer  County, 5,48,52 

Gregg  farm,     ....  •  .    .    .  357 

Grey 'swell,  Crawford  Co.,  Pa., 356  to  359 

Grey's  well,  Trunbull  Co.,  Ohio, 421,429 

Griswold,  John  W., 413 

Griswold  well,  Fig.  30, 112,115,398,413 

Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  . 2 

Gulf  of  Mexico,     2,5,331,378 

Hains  well,  Fig.  22 111,398,416 

Hale,  Arthur, 12,145,182,224 

Hall,  C.  E 32,359,419 

Hall,  James, 70,152 

Hall's  run  (McGrew  well  near), Ill 

Hammond  &  Warren, 64 

Haney  well, 110,214,221,222 

Haney  &  Bartlett's  well  No.  4 221 

Harmonial  well  No.  1 259 

Hart,  C.  E 404,405 

Hart  &  Conkle, 404 

Hartstown, 6 

Harvey  gas  well, 105,109,117 

Hatch,  F.  A., ; 12,33,145 

Hatch,  C.  E.,  Edenburg, 414 

Hayes'  farm, 434 

Hazen  farm  and  mine, 44,48,49,50 

Hazel  wood  Oil  Co.  and  wells,    .  .  . 100,189,200,202,209,210 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  449 

Page. 

Hazle  creek  gap, 18 

Henry,  J.  T.  (The  Early  and  Late  History  of  Petroleum,  by) 325 

Henry's  bend, 337 

Henry's  run, 50,  51 

Herkimer  County,  N.  Y., 369 

Herman  Station, 105,136,132  to  145,160,281 

Herron,  Lee, 221 

Herron  &  Potts, 422 

Hickory  corners, 33,  36 

Hill  well,  at  Bullion, 85 

Hobart's  quarry, 56 

Hodge,  J.  T.,  39 

Hollidayrun  (Hams  well),     111,416 

Holmes  &  Brown  well  No.  1,  Cashup, 259 

Homestead  well  pool, 257 

Hooks' run  branch,     .353,354 

Hope  well, 112,113 

Hoppin,  Mr., 24 

Horn,  C., 28 

Horn's  cliffs 28 

Hosmer  run  oil, 32 

Rowland,  A.  B., 409,410,412,416 

Howland  road, 436 

Hudson  River, 369,372 

Humboldt  glacier, 375 

Humes;  F.  W., 142,143,144;  147 

Hunter,  Dr., 116,398,399,401 

Huntingdon  Co., 19,103,393 

Huron,  361 

Hyde  (or  Little  Oil)  creek,  Crawford  Co., 3,  34 

Independence  (quarries), 93 

Indiana  .State  line, ...  381 

Iron  Bridge;  well, 84,398,410;  417 

Irvineton,  Warren  Co.,     4,333,336,337,318,353,354,391,392 

Irwin's  Mills,  N.  Y., 333,334,335 

Irwell  (Valley,  England), 439 

Jackson  Station,  Warren  Co.  (well),  .   .  • 382 

Jackson's  quarry, * 46 

James;  well, 119;  104,115,117,118 

Jamestown,  Pa.  (on  Mercer-Crawford  line) ,  .    .    1,3,11,20,53,55,56,85,94,95 

Jamestown,  Pa.,  section S3,  54 

Jamestown,  N.  Y.,       150,343,390 

Jaquay  (J  S.),  water  well,  24 

Jarecld  Manufacturing  Co.  of  Erie,     297,322 

Jersey  Shore, 39& 

John  Smith  well,  . 393, 41S 

Johnson  &  Potts, 428 

Johnson's  saw  mill, 30 

Jones  <fe  Smith, .    .  168 

Juniata  River  (upper), 13 

Kane  in  McKean  Co .- 5 

29  III. 


450  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Page. 

Kane,  E.  K., 375 

Karns,  James  E., 405,407 

Karns  (Matteson  &  McDonald), 100 

Karns  (section), 131,134,143,144 

Karns  City,     142,178,189 

Kaufman  (J.  W.)  (S.), 210 

Kearney  (Jas.), 222 

Keating,       134 

Keating  Summit  in  Potter  Co., 5 

Kentucky, 159 

Kern  well  No.  6,  Frederick, 204,100,189,210 

Kinney's  Corners,  Trum bull  Co.  Ohio, 11,  56 

Kinzua  Creek, 339,352,353,354 

Kinzua  Valley, 352 

Kinzua  Village, 252 

Kinsman  township,     56 

Kirk  &  Dillworth, 404 

Riser  (J.  H.)  farm,  near  Edenburg, 112,216,222 

Kribbs  (Capt.),  Beaver  City,     214,221,222 

Kycenceeder  Hill, 40 

Ladies'  well  on  Watson  Flats, 326 

Lake  Erie,  .  2,7,8,9,68,70,150,152,165,343,346,360,361,363,363,369,372,337,395 

basin, 331,343,354,358,360,369,385,387,392,424 

basin  valley, 332,362,387 

escarpment, .   .  365 

head,      368,372 

bottom,     381 

outlet, 152 

slope 331,345 

divide, 7,9,11,349 

Lake  Huron, 368,369 

Lake  Michigan,     368,369 

Lake  Ontario, 5,368,369,372,373,377 

Lake  Orcadie 123 

Lake  Superior, 368 

Lake  Shore  <fe  Michigan  RR.  depot, 437 

Lakeview, 150 

Laona, 346,363 

Larden's  Mills,  Harvey  gas  well,      105,110 

Lardin,  Morehead  &  Co.,.   .    .  189,202,204,210 

Lardintown  well,  Harvey  gas  well,     110 

Laurentian  mountains  of  Canada, 377 

Lawrence  County, 6,94,158,159,416,417 

wells 84,91,282 

LeBoeuf, 66,67,68,360 

LeBurg,    .   .   . 386 

LeChable, 386 

Leechburg  gas  well, 115,283 

LeRoy,  Genesee  County,  N.  Y., 152 

Lesley  (J.P.), 115,123,398 

Lewis  quarry, .64 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  451 

1'age. 

Licking  Creek  (Sligo  well  on), 115 

Light-house  point,  Dunkirk  Harbor,  N.  Y., 340 

Limestone  village,  N.  Y., 164,334 

Limestone  Township,  Warren  County, 349 

Little  Brokenstraw  Creek,     2,3,23,25,59,71,77,344 

Little  Cooley 359,360 

Little  Falls,  gap,  N.  Y., 369 

Little  Mountain,  Geauga  County,  Ohio, 94 

Little  Oil  (or  Hyde)  creek,  in  Crawford  County,     3 

Little  Schuylkill,      16 

Little  Sugar  Creek, 36 

Little  valley,      77,339,389 

Lockhaven,  Clinton  County, 108 

Locust  Mountain,     16 

Lorain  County  Ohio, 96 

Lottsville, 25,60,73,77,  78 

Lycoming  County, 393 

Lyell,  Sir  Charles 232 

Lykens  valley  bed, 15 

Mackinaw  straits,  . 368 

Maclan,     209 

Mahan  farm, 404 

Mahan  well, 105,106,109,117,393,404 

Mahoning  river, 5,373,392 

Marsh  creek, 397 

Martigny, 385,386 

Martinsburg, 131,142,143 

Maryland  State  Line, 13 

Mary  Minturn  river, 375 

Matteson  &  McDonald, 100 

Mauch  Chunk, 15 

Maumee  river  valley, 361,369,373,382 

Mauvoisin  bridge, 386 

Mayville,      64,351 

McClay  Hill, 23,  33 

McCleary  farm,  Fairview, 142,196,209 

McClelland's  (J.)  farm, 66 

McClure,  John, 210 

McCJyman's  farm 142 

McCool  (John)  (Mike)  (Barney), 222 

McCreath,  A.  S., 408 

McDonald  &  Matteson, 100 

McEntire  farm  and  coal, 44,45,46,48,  50 

McGee  run,      423 

McGrew  well,  Fig.  24, 100,111 

MoGrew  Bros,  well, 216,218,221,222 

Mcllhatten  farm 218,222 

McKean  County, 5,13,20,78,82,119,125,225,323,333,421 

southerly  line, 163 

Report, 11,225 

ravines,     160,379 


452  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHX  F.  CARLL. 

Page. 

McKean  County,  highlands,  cliffs, 159 

wells, 110,162,190,281,284 

McLanahan's  quarry, 48 

McQuade,  J.  A., 221 

Mead  Township,  Warren  County, 36,349 

Mead  well,  St.  Joe, 100,104,105,110,117 

Meadville,        3,7, 11, 33to43,85, 94,95, 359, 366 

Mecca  oil  district  in  Ohio, 91,93,94,159 

Mercer  county, .   .' 5,11,13,14,94,56,  57 

highlands,  cliffs, 159 

wells, 84,282 

Metzer,  Fredk., 40 

Mexican  gulf, 2,5,331 

Miami,  Gap  between  Maumee  river  and  the  — , 373 

Michigan,     36S 

Middlesex  Township,  Butler  County, 105,405 

Middleton's  (J.  W.)  farm  quarry, 66,  67 

Midland  well,  No.  1, 115,398,410 

Mill  Creek  Township,  Clarion  County, 115 

Mill  run,  Crawford  Co., 40,  41 

Mills,  Capt , 326 

Miller  (O.  K.)  farm, 49,50,357 

Miller  (T.  J.)  farm, 50 

Miller's  quarry, 43,44,  48 

Millerstown, 100,127,131,134,142  to  144,150 

Millville,  Clarion  County, 102,115,117,410 

Milner,  Thos.,    .   . 376,386 

Milton  farm, 140,141,144 

Mississippi  river  valley, 330,331,332,351,367,369,373 

Modoc  (Sweepstakes),      100, 134, 142 ,-143, 144, 148 

Mohawk  river  valley, 369,371,372 

Monongahela  river  valley, 393,394,398 

Mont  Mauvoisin, 385 

Mont  Pleureur, 385 

Moravian  or  Carroll  quarry, 67 

Morehead,  Lardin  &  Co., 189,202,204,210 

Morris,  I)., 40 

Morrison,  Greece, 100 

Mortimer  farm,         142,202,210 

Mosquito  creek,  Ohio, 430 

Mossmantown 434 

Muddy  creek, 8,9,35,85,89,359,360,410 

Mullingar  or  Crouse  run,    . 28.360,391 

Mushrush's  farm  and  hill, 44,45,50 

Myrick  Street,       420 

National  Hotel,  Warren,  Ohio, 432 

National  well,  No.  1,  and  2,     258,359 

Nelson  Centre,  Ohio, 433 

Nelson  Ledge,  Ohio, 433 

Nesbitt  or  Shaffer  well, 84 

Nesbitt,  Geo.  H., 416,417 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  453 

Page. 

Neshannock  river  or  creek, 5,6 

Nettleton,  E.  S., 420 

Nettleton  well, 259 

Newberry,  Dr.  J.  S., 361 

Newburg,  Ohio 96 

New  Castle,  Lawrence  County, .  .   .     6, 94  to  97, 113 

wells,  91,93,282 

Newell,  Benjamin, 39 

New  Richmond, 35 

New  York, 1,11,12,14,19,119,120,367,368,397 

fctate  line, 6,83 

Central,     381 

Southern,     78,81,377 

South  Western,     382 

Niagara  River, 150,152,387 

Nittany  Mountain  (Gap), 393 

Noble  well,  on  Oil  creek,  249,260,321 

North  Branch,  Susquehanna  basin,     397 

North  Greenland, , 375 

North  Parker  (section,  Fig.  54), 133 

North  Street  in  Meadville, 40 

North  Warren,  ...'..' 161,254,338 

Now  ( J)  farm,  St.  Joe, 142 

Oak  Shade  Well,       222 

Oelschlager  well  No.  1,  Fig.  25, Ill 

Ohio, 1,5,6,11,12,13,20,82,91,97,113,123,125,365,367,360 

Eastern, 34 

Northwestern, 380 

Central, 381 

State  line, 34,83,84,90,388 

highlands, 382 

oil  fields  and  wells,     149,421,432 

quarries,  .   .       433,434 

Ohio  river  and  valley, 2,4,6,332,378,393 

Ohio  Township,  Beaver  County,  Pa., 84 

Ohioville  well, 64,87,89,90,159 

Oil  City,  Venango  County,  5,20,98,104,111,337,338,346,356,357,358,392,416,436 
Oil  creek,  .  6,7,8,9,55,75,82,160,171,176,181,252,253,265,321.339,356  to  362,366 

East  branch, 3,5,  34 

West  branch, 8,359 

water  basin 4  to  9,356,359,366,391 

farms, 264 

gap 8 

island  in, .426 

junction  with  Pine  creek, 423 

valley, 425 

wells, 177,180,266,421 

Oil  lake, 7 

Oil  region,       123 

Old  Beaver  Canal, 6,365 

Olean,  N.  Y., 2,58,125,165,379,388,433 


454  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Page. 

Olean  Rock  City  in  Cattaraugus  County,  N.  Y., 2,     3 

Oleopolis, 337 

Ontario  lake, 5,372 

Orangeville, 57 

Orcadie  Lake, 123 

Ord, 122,123 

Ormskirk,  England, 438 

Panama  ;  Rock  city,  Chautauqua  County,  N.  Y.,     .   .  57,59,63,64,70  to  78,125 

Panama  oil  well, 75 

Parker,  Armstrong  County,    .   .   .  97,100,127,128,131,144,145,281,336,337,360 

Parkers  Landing, 134,  146  to  150 

Parkers  Island,  at  mouth  of  Clarion, 142,143 

Patterson,  John  A.,     222 

Pennine  chain  of  carboniferous  hills, 438 

Peiin  Mill  Tract, 413 

Pennsylvania-Ohio  State  line, 395 

Pennsylvania  Rock  Oil  Co 421 

Perry  Township,  Lawrence  Co.,    .   .   .   , 84,416 

Perry  Township,  Armstrong  Co., Ill 

Peterson  well, 407 

Petrolia,  Fairview  Township,  Butler  Co.,     104 

105, 111,  131, 134, 137, 142, 143  to  148, 150, 189, 194, 196, 198, 200, 202, 204, 321 

wells, 99,101,102,103,130,182,187,189,210,212,213 

Hazelwood  well  No.  21, 100 

Evans  well  No.  21, 100 

Petroleum  Centre,       140,141,357,366 

Philadelphia  and  Erie  RR., 26 

Phillips  Bros., 85,86,418 

Pickwick, v 134 

Pike's  ridge , 2 

Pike's  rocks, 19,23 

Pine  creek,  Warren  Co  , 5,358,366,423 

Pine  creek,  Armstrong  Co.,     409 

Pine  valley,  in  Lycoming  County, 393 

Pine  valley,  in  Tioga  County, 396,397 

Pine  Station,  Warren  Co., 76 

Pine  well,  Armstrong  Co., 115,282,398,409 

Pine  Township,  Armstrong  County, 409 

Pine  Valley  Township,  Armstrong  County, 115 

Piney  Township,  Clarion  Co.  (Sligo  well), 115 

Pioneer,  Venango  Co.,  level, 357 

Pioneer  well,  gravel  pits, 427 

Pithole,  Venango  Co., 140,141,176,182,257,259,260,268,269 

wells, 82,177,181 

Pittsburgh,     4,6,84,97,102,104,115,116,150,335,337,346,393,398,424 

steel  works, 398 

well, 115,117,118,282,283 

P.  T.  &  B.  RR., Ill 

Pittsfield,  Warren  County,  Pa., 71 

Pittsfiekl  Township,  Warren  County, 26 

Platt,  W.  G., 393 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  455 

Page. 

Pleasant  valley,  Warren  County, 7 

Pleasantville,  Venango-  Co.,    .  81,84,85,90,116,140,141,144,160,176,399,403,422 

belt, 259 

district,      181,182,250 

plank  road,     423 

section, 81,85,129,179,321 

wells,     85,134,138,177,420 

Plyer  farm,  Cherry  run  well,     111,412 

Point  PelS  island,        361 

Portage  County,  Ohio, 56,433 

Portage  river,  Ohio, 361 

Potter  County, 5,379 

Potts,  Col.  Jos.  D., 409,410,412,416 

Potts  &  Herron, 422 

Potts  <fe  Johnson, 428 

Pottsville,  Schuylkill  County,     13,  16 

Power,  W.  G., 418 

Powers' Corners,  Mecca  Township,  Trumbull  Co.,  Ohio,  .   .   .   .    94 ,429  to  431 

President,  Venango  Co., 150,337 

Prospect  bridge,  Butler  Co., 418 

"Pulpit  Rocks," 394 

Pymatuning  creek,  swamp,  basin, 5  to  9,56, 434 

Quaker  Hill,  Warren  Co., 58,353 

Ramsey,  J.  W., 185,401,403 

Randall,  F.A., 20,  21 

Randolph  Township,  Crawford  Co., 36 

Rattlesnake  gulch,  Clarion  Co., 413 

Griswold  well, 112,115 

Rawle,  Boyce  &  Co.  well, 419,398 

Raymilton,  Venango  County,  Pa., 94,95,140,141,419 

Oil  wells, 85,  93 

Raymond  estate,  Raymilton, 140 

Raymond's  Corners  in  Potter  County, • 5 

Raymond  well  No.  6,         419,93,393 

Red  Bank  creek, 115 

Red  Bank  Township,  Clarion  County 115 

Reddick  farm  ("Columbia  Hill"), 134,142 

Reliance  well, 420,85,398 

Reno;  section, 134,140,141,144;  129 

Reservoir  (new)  at  Meadville 41 

Rhine, 386 

Rhone,  Plain;  valley, 386;  385 

Riceville,  Crawford  County, 11 

Richmond  (Section),  Fig.  57, 133 

Richmond  Township,  Crawford  Co., 35 

Ritts,  between  St.  Petersburg  and  Emlenton, 134 

Roberts,  Col.  E.  A.  L., 325,326 

Roberts'  patent, 327 

Roberts'  Torpedo  Co., 329 

Rochester  lubricating  refineries, 427 

Rock  cities 21,23,25,77,79,254,390,433 


456  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 


of  Southern  N.  Y.  and  North  Western  Pennsylvania, 62 

"Rock  Hotel,"  Panama  N.  Y., ' 59 

Rockwell;  No.  1,  259;  258 

Rockwood,  Venango  Co., 237 

Rodger's  farm,  McKean  Co 226 

Rogers,  Prof.  H.  D, ;  final  report, 14,39,108;  14,17,  66 

Rorher  well  No.  2;  Fig.  29, 113,398,414 

Rouseville;  section, 134,140,141,144,357;  129 

Salamanca,  N.  Y., 58,77,124,125,390 

rook, 78 

rock  city, 77 

Sandusky  River,  Gap  between  it  and  the  Scioto, 373 

Sandy  Creek  Township,  Venango  County, 419 

Say  farm,  Martinsburg,     142 

Schreiber,  Peter, 415 

Schreiber  well,  Fig.  26, 112 

Schuylkill  County, 13 

Scioto,  Gap  between  Sandusky  River  and  the, 373 

Scotland, 123 

Scrubgrass, 134,140,141,260,337 

section,  Fig.  41, 129 

Seneca  Lake, 396 

cut  near  head, 373 

Seneca  Oil  Co., 421 

Shaffer  run, 423 

Shaffer  or  Nesbitt  well,  Fig.  9, 84 

Shakely  H.  P.  farm, .' 200,209 

Shamburg,  Venango  Co 140,141,144,260 

Shamokin  basin,  gap,  village, 18 

Sharon,  Mercer  County  Pa., 93,94,95,97,419 

Furnace, 419 

block  coal  bed, 14,  57 

coal  group, 15,  17 

well, 93,282 

Sharp  Mountain, 16*17,  18 

Sharpsburg,  Allegheny  Co., 105 

wells,  283 

Sheakley  Station,     100,134 

Sheasley, 100 

Sheffield, 349,350 

well, 350 

Shenango  creek, 5 

Shenango,  river 3,6,7,8,52,54,55,56,392,393 

valley, 91 

dam  or  obstruction, 7 ,     8 

country, 9,  20 

Sherwood's  Report  G, 396 

Shippenville,     98,134,142,144,145,414 

section, 133 

Hope  well  near, 112 

Rohrer  well  No.  2,  near, 112 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  457 

Page. 

Siverly  Farm, 140,141 

Six  Points  (Pool  oil),     98 

Slate  run,  (Oil  pool  on), 98 

Sligo  well, 115 

Slippery  rock, 90 

creek,     86,87,89,159,416,417 

country, 89 

oil-producing  district  and  oil  horizon, 155,281 

wells,  87,  88 

Township,  Lawrence  county,  .   : 84,417 

vicinity, 89 

Sloan  farm, 338 

Smith,  John  ;  farm ;  section,  record, 168 ;  418 ;  87, 

well, 85,86,91,96,418 

Smith  farm  well  record, 168 

Smith's  ferry, 84,90,159,165,388 

oil-producing  district, 155 

oil  horizon, 281 

Smith's  Straits, 374 

Smith  well,     89 

Smith  <fe  Jones, .168 

Snodgrass,  J.  M.,  <fe  Robt.,  farm,   .   . 52 

Snodgrass,  W.  J.  farm, 53 

Snodgrass  quarries, 19,53,54,  55 

Snodgrass  ore  bank, 52 

Snow,  W.  farm,  Kern  well, .204,210 

Southwick  W.  G., 222 

Southwick's  summit, i 33,35,  36 

Sparta, 85 

Spartansburg, 34 

Spring  creek,     3,23,28,33,391 

west  branch, ....•• 29 

watershed, 34 

station, 25,27,  29 

Spring  mountain, 18 

State  line,        65, 71, 72, 255 ',334, 342 

"State  road," 11,33,34,36,37,38,  39 

line  run  over, 77 

between  the  two  Brokenstraws, 25 

St.  Branchier, 386 

Steamburg, 339,348,349,332,354,390 

Sterrett  &  Gibbs  Manufacturing  Co.  of  Titusville 291 

Stevenson,  Prof.  J.  J., 156,158,393 

Report  K, 157 

Stick  measurement, 183 

Stillwater  creek, 2,23,  26 

St.  Joe, 110,134,143,144 

line  from—  to  Herman  Station, .  145 

Base  line  from  Parker  City  to 145 

J.  Now  farm,      142 

section,  Fig.  48, 131 


458  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Page. 

Mead  well, 100,105 

St.  Lawrence, 5,169,171,172,278 

mouth, 370 

valley, 351,369 

Gulf, 2 

Stoneham, 161,348,352,391 

abandoned  cliff, .    .  350 

Stonehouse, 143 

Valley  near  RR.  Station, 142 

Stony  ridge 63 

Stowell's  reports, 147 

Petroleum  Reporter 147,422 

St.  Petersburg ;  section, 134  ;  133 

Straits  of  Mackinaw, 368 

Strotrnan  farm,  Schreiber  well 112 

Strotman  well, 398,415 

Sugar  creek, 357 

mouth, 7 

oil  wells, 85 

Sugar  Grove  in  Warren  Co., 1,2,3,  11 

Sugar  Grove  Township,  Warren  Co., 23 

Summit, 150,359,404 

County,  Ohio, 94,  96 

Township,  Butler  Co., 404 

Thompson  well, 105 

Summit  well, 105,398,404 

Susquehunna  River, 5,13,373,378 

North  Branch, 379 

Valley, 331,377 

Sutton,  P.  farm, 194 

Sutton  well  No.  4, 100,134,189,194,196,209 

Sutton  well  section, 321 

Swamp  run,        25 

Sweepstakes,  Modoc, 100 

Tamaqua 15 

Tarentum 102,104,105,108,405 

wells,     109,118,282,283 

Graff,  Bennett  &  Co.'s  well, 103,115 

Tarport, 334 

Taylor,  H.  L.  &  Co., 194,204,209,210 

Thatcher,  Fredk.,     210 

Thomas,  H.  W., 229 

Thompson,  Carbon  Centre ;  farm, 100,142 

Thompson's  gap 8 

Thompson's  station ;  cut,      4,5,6,7,28,336,351;     8 

Thompson  well,        430 

at  Carbon  Centre, 105 

section, 110 

Thompson's, 352,353,354,355 

Thorp's  quarry, 37 


INDEX  A,  NOMINAL.  III.  459 

Paj?e. 

Tidioute,  Warren  Co., , 5,84,85,134,139,140 

144,150,160,163,176,182,251,274,336,337,338,344,349,353,127,136,281 

crevices  in  oil  sand,      249 

district,      139 

section, 129,179,181 

wells,     85,177,250 

Tidioute  to  Fagundas, 139 

Tidioute  to  Church  Run, 139 

Tidioute,  Bullion  oil  belt,     97 

Tioga  County  (ice  action  in), 396 

Tioga  River, 397 

Tionesta,  Forest  County, 337 

Tionesta  Bend, 349 

Tionesta  Creek,     349,350,351,352,353,391 

South  branch, 349 

Upper  branches, 350 

drainage, 349 

outlet 350 

Titusville, 5,141,160,326,356,357,358,366,421,422,423 

drifts, 359 

flats, 357,359 

Watson  Flats, 140,141 

wells,     154,282,311 

Gravel  well  district, .423 

Toby  creek,      413 

Toby  Township,  Clarion  County, 412 

Cherry  run  well, Ill ,  115 

Trevorton, 18 

Triangle  section,  Plate  XXIX, 133  . 

Triumph,  in  Warren  County, 240 

agency  of  gas  pumps,      260 

district, 139 

oil  wells, 266 

True's  quarry, 39;  37,39,40,42 

Trunkey  farm, 434 

Trumbull  County,  Ohio 11,56,96,159,429 

breach  in, 381 

Mecca  oil  field, 93 

wells, 429 

Tuna=Tunangwant, 335 

Tuna  creek, 335 

Tuna  flats, 255 

Tuna  valley, 162,164 

Tunangwant  creek,      3,345,362 

East  and  West  branch  (Ridge  between), 244 

Valley,   ...  150,333 

present  and  ancient  valley  floors, 334 

rock  cities  on  hills  bordering—, 79 

Turkey  City, 142,144 

Tuscarawas.     Gap  between  Black  River  and  the,      373 

Tuscarawas.    Gap  between  Cuyahoga  River  and  the,     373 


460  III.   REPORT  OF  PEOGEESS.   JOHN  F.  CAELL. 

Page. 

Two  Mile  run, 349 

Unger'shill, 46,  48 

Unger's  J.  mill, 48 

Union,  well, .75 

United  States  well  pool, 257 

Upper  Oil  creek, 358 

Uray's  hill, 19 

Utica, 366 

Val  de  Bagnes, 385,386 

Van  Gorder  well,      432 

Venango  County,     55,58,71,74,94,125,130,132,140,141,158,436,437 

Sandy  Creek  Township, 419 

geology  of, 88 

oil  wells, 87,225 

well  records, 127 

highlands  of  Cliffs, 159 

rock  cities, 254 

Venango-Butler  County  line,  . 98 

Venitz,  M., 385 

"Vermilion  River, 96,  97 

mouth, 94 

Virginia, 123 

Wabash  River  Valley, 373,382 

Walnut  Bend, 337 

Warren,  Pa., 6,21,160  to  163,336  to  338,342,348  to  354,390 

wells, 160,162 

Warren  County,  Pa 13,20,23,125,128,159,161,240,282,421 

lines, 33,  96 

wells,     85,225 

oil  field, 254 

Warren,  Trumbull  County,  Ohio, 94,95,432,435 

Warren  &  Hammond  of  Mayville, 64 

Washabaugh,  D., 210 

Washington, 326 

County, 156 

well, Ill 

Waterford, 360 

Township, 66 

Watson, 154 

Watson  Flats,  Titusville, 140,326,360,421,426 

Watson's  well, 154,311,422 

Wattsburg,  Erie  County, 65 

Wayne  Township, 36 

Weeks'  well,  . 342 

Welch  Mountain  (England), 438 

Wellsville,  N.  Y., 58,396 

West  Branch  Spring  Creek,  Warren  Co., 33 

West  Greenville,      6,    7 

West  Hickory,  Venango  Co., 337 

Westmoreland  County,     115,158,171 

West  Pennsylvania  RR., 407,408 


INDEX  B,  SUBJECTS.  III.  461 

Page. 

West  Salamanca, 389 

West  Spring  Creek,  Warren  County, 11,23,29,33,85 

West  Virginia  oil  region, 149,150 

Wheatland  Township,  Clarion  County, 112 

White,  Prof., 11,20,22,39,57,87,110,146,157,393,403 

White  &  Fontaine 156 

Wiconisco  basin, 17 

Wilcox  wells, 163 

Wilkesbarre, 393 

Williams'  quarry, 64,  70 

Williams  A.  K., 419 

Wolf,  A., 209 

Wolf  creek, 86 

Woodcock  creek, 35,  36 

Woodin  Well  on  Blood  farm, 326 

Worrall,  Col.  Jas., 6 

Wrightsville, 2,25,  77 

Wyandot  County,  Ohio, 381 

Youngsville, 150 

Zerbe'sgap -. 18 


Index  B.  Subjects. 

[NOTE.— The  reference/I  in  this  Index  are  not  to  the  pages,  but  to  the  Sections  (§5)  on  the 
pages.  ] 

Advantages  of  cased  wells, §  563 

Age  of  the  petroleum, 495 

Amber-oil  horizon,  Ohioville,  (Pithole  Grit,) 235 

Amber-oil  from  Second  Sand,  p.  160,      358 

Anchor  piece  described, note  to  549 

Anchor  described, 570 

Ancient  valleys, •.   .  .  .  616 

Antiquity  of  rock-oil,      495 

Area  of  country  of  well  borings, 292,359 

Ascent  of  petroleum  from  below  advocated, 497 

Auger;  stem;  bit, 529,530,531 

Avalanches  of  snow  and  rock, t 642 

Aviculopecten  under  GaTland  conglomerate, 81 

Aviculopecten  on  Crooked  creek, 145 

Bad  well-records  the  cause  of  confusion  in  oil-theories,  shown  in  Chap. 

XIX, 374 

Bailers  for  oil-wells  described, .   .  .   .  523 

Band-wheel  described, 521 

"      shaft,  arm  and  flanges, 526 

Barrier  divide  stops  the  glacier,     634 

Barrels  of  oil  per  acre,  calculated, 454 

Base  of  the  Oil  Sand  Group  fixed  geologically, 438 

Beaver  Falls  80'  Sandstone=Pithole  Grit,     234 

Bedford  Shale  of  Ohio=Reds  of  Pennsylvania, 245 

Belt  of  red  shale  under  Pithole  Grit  (Map), 246 


462  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Berea  Grit  of  Ohio=Third  Mtn.  Sand=Pithole  Grit, §216 

"      at  Mecca,  Ohio,  described, 240 

"      =75'  Sandstone  in  Sharon  well 240 

"       =Pithole  Grit,  proved  by  underlying  red  shales, 245 

"      Resum6  of  arguments,      .          313 

Big  Red,  between  Second  and  Third  Oil  Sands ;  See  Reds, 283 

Bits  used  in  oil-boring, 538 

Black  oil  from  the  Stray  Sand, 358,449 

Black  shale  ;  Snodgrass, 146 

Blocks  of  Garland  Conglomerate,  on  hill  side, 71 

"      of  Panama  Conglomerate  at  Panama, 172 

"       "        "        at  Bleaksley, 181 

"       "  one  mile  south  of  the  State  Line, 196 

Block  coal, 130 

Blood  rock,  between  Second  and  Third  O.  Sand  ;  See  Reds, 283 

Blue  shale  roof  to  First  Oil  Sand,  local,         267 

Boiler  for  oil  well  pumping  engine,  described, 517 

Bolts  for  saddle  in  oil  well  rig, 526 

Bore-holes  at  Hazen's, 141 

Borings  over  a  large  area  of  country, 292 

Borings:  total  combined  length=800  miles, 360 

Bottle  arrangement  of  drillings, note  to  317 

Bottles  for  specimens  of  drillings,    .   . 413 

Bowl-shaped  valleys, 644 

Bowlders  of  gneiss;  in  Crawford  county, 89,  92 

"       of  local  rocks  carried  by  ice, 98 

"       atMeadville;  and  elsewhere, 116;  131,134 

"        See  Gneiss;  See  Erratics. 

Boxes  for  band-wheel  shaft  at  oil  wells, 526 

Bradford  Oil  horizon,  supposed  at  first  to  be  the  same  as  that  of  Venango 

Oil  Sand  Group, 341 

Bradford  Third  Sand  never  seen  in  Warren  wells, 349 

"       described  on  page  162,      358 

Bradford  well  carefully  measured,      397 

Building  stone  quarries  at  Meadville,     109 

"        of  old  canal  locks  in  Erie  county,      189 

"       west  of  the  Ohio  line,  described  in  Ch.  XXXVII,     684 

Buried  valley  of  Spring  Creek,     80 

Bull  wheel  at  oil  wells  described, ^ •*....  523 

Catamites  in  Ellis  quarry,  Garland  Conglomerate, 104 

"  abundant  in  quarry  at  Coal  Pit  section, 125 

Canadian  Oil  field,  page  164,  .  358 

Canadian  Mer-de-glace,  described,  Ch.  XXXIV, .627 

Careless  numbering  of  Sand  rocks  by  drillers, 378 

Carll's  measurement  of  six  wells  at  Petrolia,  &c., 395 

Carpenter's  rig  for  Oil  wells,  described, 510 

Casing  wells  a  modern  invention, 477 

"       enlarged  before  1876, 478 

"       of  wells,  described;  its  advantages, 546,563 

"       of  3J"  introduced, 555 

Casing-head  for  Oil  wells,  555 

Ctenacanthus  triangularis  in  Conglomerate, 90 


INDEX  B,  SUBJECTS.  III.  463 

Catskill  red  rocks, §  302 

Caverns  filled  with  oil,  an  absurdity 453 

Center-irons  for  walking-beam  and  sampson-post, 526 

Center  line  of  main-sill  and  walking-beam,     516 

Chains  of  small  lakes  produced  by  moraines,      644 

Chemung  shales  under  the  Sub-Garland  Sandstone, 65 

Chemung;  see  Oil  Sands, 88 

Chemung  type  of  fossils  over  the  Panama  Conglomerate, 204 

Chemung  age  of  the  Oil  Sands  now  very  doubtful, 297 

Chemung  rocks  perhaps  redeposited, 302 

Chemung  shales  shown  in  plates  on  pp.  129  et  seq., 315 

Christy  Sandstone 151 

Circular  issued  to  Oil  men, 363 

Circulation  of  oil  in  the  sands,  slow, 461 

Classification  of  the  Oil  Sands  on  Oil  Creek, 383 

Cliffs  at  Horn's,     76 

Coal— see  Plant  Bed, 86 

"      30' below  top  of  knob,  Randolph  township,  Crawford  Co.,     .   .   .   .100 

"      most  northerly  coal  known  in  N.  W.  Pa., 100 

"      south  west  of  Meadville,  described, 123 

Coal  layers  in  quarry  rock  at  Mushrush's, 125 

Coal  at  Mclntyre's ;  at  Hazen's, 130,139,140,147 

Collar  to  shaft  in  Oil-well  rig note  to  527 

Collection  of  specimens,  how  best  made, 409 

Colors  of  petroleums  from  different  sands,  page  160, 358 

Condensation  of  oil  from  gas,  discussed, 503 

Conductors  for  oil  wells,  described, 512 

Conductor  pipe  for  oil  wells, 546 

Conglomerate,  see  Pottsville  Conglomerate, 33,35,38,213,265 

Conglomerate,  see  Ohio  Conglomerate, 684 

Conglomerates;  number  and  order  suggested, 213 

Conglomerate,  see  Olean,  Garland,  Panama,  Salamanca. 
Conglomerate,  see  Sub-Olean,  Sub-garland. 

Conglomerate  of  the  Tunangwant, 213 

Connoquenessing  Sandstone, 24 

"        "    =:First  Mountain  Sand, 24 

"        "    =Kinzua  Creek  Sandstone, 24 

"        "    south  west  of  Slippery  Rock  Creek, 233 

"        "    a  key  rock  in  Beaver  County, 233 

Continental  divide  or  highlands, 622 

Contract  drilling,      362 

Contractors,  careless  about  good  well-records 375 

Contrast  of  producing  &  nonproducing  areas  Chap.  XIII, 297 

Corniferous  Limestone,  described, note  to  351 ,358 

"       in  Coburn  well  at  Fredonia,  N.  Y., 352 

<«        "        "    thickness  remarkable 352 

Corniferous  oil-horizon 351 

Cost  of  oil  well  rig ;  of  rig  irons, 511,527 

"   of  drilling  cased  wells, 562 

"   of  an  oil  well  in  1878  in  the  Bradford  district, 572 

"   of  an  oil  well,  1865  to  1872,  Butler  district, 575 


464  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Crawford  shales  above  &  below  Pithole  Grit, §  217 

of  uniform  thickness  (400' to  500'), .230,316 

shown  in  sections, 266 

characteristically  sandy, 267 

shown  in  plates  on  pp.  129  et  seq., 315 

described  on  page  159, 358 

Crevices  in  the  Sub-Garland  rocks  at  Pike's 64 

Crevice  in  the  Mountain  Sandstone note  to  418 

Crevices  in  Sandrocks  described  and  discussed,  Ch.  XXIV, 442 

Crevice-searcher,  described, 443 

Crevices  rare, 448 

"       not  continuous  upward ;  proved  by  the  oils, 448 

"       in  the  Noble  well  district, 450 

"       more  numerous  in  the  higher  Sands, 450 

Crevice  theory  exploded, 460 

Crown  pulley  for  Oil-well  rig, 526 

Current-bedding  characteristic  of  Sub-Garland  Cong., 58 

Current,  Direction  shown  by  a  fossil  tree  stem,      72 

Currents  in  the'ocean  in  the  Oil  age, 300 

"        were  they  fluviatile  or  oceanic?      435 

Cuts  in  the  Conglomerate  barrier  made  by  ice, 648 

Cypricardia  under  the  Garland  Conglomerate, 81 

C.  rhombea,  in  the  Panama  Conglomerate,  .   .   .  , 190 

C.  contra  eta,  in  the  Panama  Conglomerate, 190 

Date  of  the  gaps  made  for  the  Southern  drainage, 23 

Debacles,  or  Avalanches, 642 

Deep  wells,  dry,  tabulated, 506 

Deep  wells  all  fail  to  yield  oil 509 

Deep  wet  wells, 561 

Defects  of  the  old  styles  of  boring  wells, 553,559 

Deposit  of  the  Oil  Sands,  theories  discussed, 299,427 

Deposits  of  the  same  age,  locally  different, note  to  304 

Depth  of  bore-holes,  total  800  miles, 360 

"       of  oil  producing  wells,  less  than  2000',     506 

Depth  of  Drift  in  the  Allegheny  River  Valley  (table), 591 

11       345'  by  calculation  at  Falconer's,     598 

"       600'  at  Cassadaga  lake, 602 

"       on  Oil  Creek  and  French  Creek,  tabulated, 615 

Derivation  of  the  sand  and  gravel  of  the  Oil  Sands, .  435 

Derrick  measurement  of  wells, 391 

Derrick  pulley  described, 526 

Disastrous  mistake  in  naming  Butler  Third  Sand, 327 

Diameter  of  wells, 452 

Diagram  of  structure  of  oil  sands,  Plate  35,  p.  267, 482 

Diary  of  each  day's  drilling  ;  Dennis  well, 418 ;  426 

Difficulties  encountered  in  measuring  well  depths, 394 

Dimensions  of  drilling  tools, 535 

Dip  of  the  rocks ;  rate  at  Hazen's  coal  mine, 142 

"    of  the  Panama  Conglomerate  southward, 161 

"    down  the  Brokenstraw §161,187,193 

44    at  Lottsville  82'-j-  per  mile,     197 


INDEX  B,  SUBJECTS.  III.  465 

Dip  calculations  of  Berea  and  Pithole  Grits  agree, §  241 

Dip  of  Oil  Sand  Group  uniform  south  westward, 244 

Dip,  as  assumed  by  drillers,  deceptive, 328 

Dip  of  Venango  Oil  Sand  Group,  discussed  in  detail, .  329 

"    Chapter  XV;  Plates  VIII,  IX, .   .  329 

Dip  of  Corniferous  Limestone  Oil  Horizon  calculated, 353 

Direction  of  ancient  current  shown  by  fossil  tree, 72 

Distinct  at  Christy  quarry, 154 

Distillation  theory  of  the  genesis, of  petroleum, 497,498 

Distribution  of  Erratics  (see  Erratics;  Boulders), 659 

Divide  at  Cassadaga  Lake,    ....          . 603 

Dividing  highlands  along  the  State  Line, 622 

Doctoring  well  records, 367 

Drainage-waters  of  the  region  ;  principal  streams, 8 

Drainage  might  now  be  reversed  by  dams,          16,  17 

"         affected  by  the  boring  of  many  wells, 446 

Drainage  of  Chautauqua  basin,  described, 582 

"         actually  reversed, 607 

"         of  the  Tionesta,  reversed,     608 

Drainage  maps,  Plates  I  and  II, 610 

Drainage  of  the  Alleghany  River  discussed, 613 

Drawings  (working)  of  oil  well  rig  and  tools, 513 

Drawing  the  tools  from  an  oil  well,  . 543 

Drift  heaps  at  Pike's  Ptocks ;  elsewhere, 66;  97 

Drift  (northern)  in  Spring  Creek  valley,          77 

"     200'  deep  on  Cotter  Farm ;  137'  at  Spring  creek, 80 

"     at  Meadville ;  on  Henry's  run  ;  at  Lottsville,      115,143,196 

"     in  Allegheny  valley ;  table  of  depths,  591 

"     on  Oil  and  French  creeks  ;  tables  of  depth, 615 

"     calculated  depth  at  Falconer's,  345', 598 

«          "      "      at  Cassadaga  Lake,  500', 602 

"     depth  diagrams,  p.  364,  619,620 

"     rate  of  advance  from  Canada,  estimated, 638 

"     limit  towards  the  south-east, 648 

Drilling  by  contract ;  effect  upon  records, 362 

Drill-holes  sunk  too  rapidly  to  get  records,      375 

Drillers' records  geologically  defective ;  why? 376 

"        Kindness  toauthor,  400 

Drillings  from  Boyd's  Hill  well,  Pittsburgh,  described, 286 

"         in  bottles,          note  to  317,371 

Drilling  rate  shown  in  Plate  XVII,     411 

"        rapid  in  soft  rocks,     412 

Drilling;  diaries  kept,  418,426 

Drilling  tools  described,  Chap.  XXVIII,  Plate  XVI,     528 

"        dimensions;  weight, 535,537 

Drilling  process  described .539,542 

Drilling  resumed  after  casing,        545 

Drilling  methods  changed,  from  1861  to  1878, 546 

exhibited  Plates  XIV,  XIV  bis.  XV,  XXXIX, 546 

Drillings  of  wells  preserved  and  discussed, 660,661 

Drive-pipe  described,  p.  316,  .   .       . 540;  note  to  554 

30  III. 


466  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Drive-pipe  section  of  oil  well,     §547 

Dry  holes  of  great  depth  tabulated,      506 

Dunkard  Creek  (Greene  County)  Oil  Horizon, note  to  358 

Earth-heat.     Does  it  affect  the  theory  of  Oil  ? 492 

"     as  to  the  decomposition  or  organisms, 499 

Eddy-hills  cut  out  by  glacial  ice, 647  note  to  658 

Eden  burg  three  wells,  measured  carefully, 397 

Eighty  foot  sandstone  at  Beaver  Falls=Pithole  Grit, 234 

Ellicottville  rock=S;ilauianca  conglomerate, 307 

Emergence  of  land  in  Oil  Sand  age,  discussed, 439 

Encroaching  sea  hypothesis,  440 

Engines  for  pumping  oil,  described,  Plates  XXXVI,  XXXVII, 517 

Epoch  of  the  Venango  Oil  Sand  Group, 428 

Erection  of  guides  at  oil  wells, 540 

Erosion  produces  rounded  hills  in  the  north, 10 

"        rugged  hills  in  the  south 10 

Erosion  of  the  district, 79 

"        of  valleys,  of  three  characters, 605 

Erosion  of  gravel,  swift  &  dangerous, 619 

Erosion  (postglacial)  southward,      621 

Erosion  by  the  glacial  waters,  discussed, 626 

"         by  ice,  described  and  exemplified, 646 

Erratics  at  Meadviile ;  see  Gneiss,  115 

Erratics,  how  distributed;  in  long  lines, 659 

"          in  small  proportion  to  the  general  Drift, 659 

JEuomphalus  depressus  in  the  Panama  Conglomerate, 190 

Excavation  of  Lake  Erie,      622 

Fall  of  the  present  Allegheny  river  bed, 592 

Fast  drilling  a  sign  of  Crawford  Shales, 318 

Feeling  bottom  in  oil  well  drilling,         394 

Ferriferous  (Shenango,  Yellow,  Sub-Garland)  Sandstone, 58 

Ferriferous  Limestone  a  good  guide  S.  W.  of  the  Smith  well,     231 

a  Key  rock  for  drillers, 223,227,238,252,264 

"  in  the  Boyd's  hill  well,  Pittsburgh,  discussed, 288 

Fifty-foot  rock  at  Petrolia 404 

Fifth  Oil  Sand=Third  Oil  Sand, 323 

First  Butler  Oil  Sand  overlies  First  Venango  O.  S.,     272 

"        "        "    distance  65',  and  110', 272 

"        "    =Gas  Sand. 
First  Venango  Oil  Sand ;  in  Gibson  well, 88 ;  155 

"        "    =Second  Butler  Oil  Sand,       .   .       272 

"        "    exposed  in  hillsides  at  Warren, 358 

"        "    oil  bearing  when  not  underlaid  by  Second  Sand, 497 

First  Mountain  Sand=Connoquenessing  Sandstone,  214 

"  "          =Kinzua  Creek  Sandstone  of  McKean  Co., 214 

fish-spine  in  bowlder  of  pea  Conglomerate,  90 

Fish  in  Miller's  quarry  rock ;  Sub-Garland  Cong., 122 

"    in  Panama  Conglomerate, 190 

Fishing  jobs  in  Oil  well  sinking,  p.  221, note  to  §  418 

"        tools;  many  such  invented, 528 

"        in  cased  wells  easier  done, 563 


INDEX  B,  SUBJECTS.  III.  467 

Fissures  in  Panama  Conglomerate,  described, §  172 

"          see  Crevices. 

Flooded  oil  territory  discussed  in  Ch.  XXV,      458 

Flooding  an  oil  district  calamitous, 476 

"        sometimes  temporary,        481 

Fluviatile  currents  in  the  Oil  age  discussed, 435 

Formations  in  vertical  column,      ...       .  358 

Fossil  tree  in  a  block  of  Garland  Conglomerate, 72 

Fossils  abundant  in  Mill  Creek,  Meadville, 114 

"       very  abundant  in  Panama  Conglomerate,      190 

"       in  the  rocks  over  Panama  Cong.  Coffee  Creek, 204 

"       abundant  in  lower  rocks, 499 

Fossil  life  changed, 301 

Foundation  timbers  of  Derrick,  described, .  514 

Fourth  Oil  Sand  yields  Gas  in  Thompson  well, 273 

"        "    also  in  Burns  &  Delemater  wells, 273 

"        "    of  Butler  County, 323 

"        "    not  found  at  Parker's,  being— Venango  3d  Sand,     340 

Fourth  Sand  Oil  belt  at  Petrolia,   ...       402 

Fourth  Sand  at  Warren  (quite  different), 358 

Fracturing  of  rocks  universal, .    .501 

Fresh-water  Sands  at  Tidioute  (2d  Mtn.  S.  to  1st  O.  Sand), 450 

"          "          "       hold  Salt  water  in  Butler  County,         450 

Fresh  water  cased  out,        476 

fucoids  in  rocks  beneath  Garland  Conglomerate, 81 

"        in  Sub-Garland  rocks  on  Henry's  run, 144 

"        on  Crooked  Creek,  145 

"        in  Panama  Conglomerate, 190 

"        in  rocks  over  the  Panama  Cong.,  Lottsville, 197 

Gaps  gradually  deepened  and  widened,  4 

"      cut  by  glacial  waters  for  a  new  drainage  system, 20 

"      cut  by  ice  and  water,       21,23,24,626 

Garland  Conglomerate ;  its  topography,  Ch.  I, 1 

"  "  outcrop,  winding  and  irregular, 9 

Garland=Sharon— Olean  Conglomerate  described,  Ch.  II, 27 

"  outcrop  surveyed  with  transit  and  level, 27 

Garland  Conglomerate;  its  place  in  the  Series, 32 

"        "    exposures  for  study, ."  .       .....    52 

Garland  and  Sub-Garland  Conglomerates  contrasted, 58 

"        "    distinguishable  by  four  marks,  58 

Garland  Conglomerate  in  Warren  Co.     Chap.  Ill,   . 59 

"        "    makes  Pike's  Rocks,  ...  60 

"        "    northernmost  outlier  at  Lottsville, 67 

Garland  quarries  described,         .    .  68 

Garland  Conglomerate  in  Crawford  Co.  described  Ch.  IV, 91 

"    in  Bates'  Hill, 93 

"        "    in  Ellis'  quarry  near  Meadville, 104 

"        "    at  Meadville, 101,106 

"        "    southwest  of  Meadville, 118 

"        "    in  Unger's  Hill;  at  Snodgrass' quarry, 134;  151 

"        "    eroded  from  off  Trumbull  Co.  Ohio,      159 

Garland=Ohio  Conglomerate,  Pymatuning  Ridge, 159 


468  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Garland  Conglomerate  underlies  Sharon  coal, §  160 

Garland  Conglomerate=Seco'nd  Mountain  sandstone,     215 

Garland  Conglomerate.     Resume1  of  its  story, 311 

Gas  in  the  Fourth  Sand  of  Butler  county, 273 

Gas  not  confined  to  any  one  horizon, 274 

Gas  and  oil, 460,475 

Gas  condensed  into  oil  in  the  Sands.    Theory, 498 

Gas  universally  issuing  from  all  oil  wells, 499 

Gas  well  horizons  of  unusual  power,          273 

Gas  well  at  Fredonia,  N.  Y.,  Coburn  well, 352 

Gas  delivered  at  rates  proportionate  to  rock  porosity, 500 

Gas  pumps  invented  and  used  for  restoring  oil  wells, 467 

Gas  in  cased  wells.    Method  of  management,      note  to  562 

Gas  pressure  130  lib  to  the  inch, 644 

Gas  from  oil  well, 665 

Gas  Sandstone  of  Harvey  well  overlies  Oil  Sands, 271 

"        "      =Butler  First  Oil  Sand, 273 

"        "         in  the  Leechburg  &  Pittsburgh  wells, 293 

Gates  of  erosion  for  the  post  glacial  drainage, 626 

Genesis  of  petroleum.    See  Oil,  490 

"        "    from  condensed  gas.    Theory  discussed,      498 

Geological  Strata  of  the  Oil  Wells.    See  Section, 564 

Geologists'  difficulties  in  the  Oil  region, 371 

Glacial  ice  sheet,  advance  from  Canada,     624 

Glacial  amphitheatres,    .       .    .  647 

Glacial  Drift  described  in  Chap  XXX,  .   .   .   . ' 579 

Glacial  eddy-hills, 647 

Glacial  Epoch, 580 

Glacial  lakes, 642 

Glacial  Scratches,  strife,  at  Meadville, 105 

"        "    at  McLanahan's  quarry, 138 

"        "    at  Christy's  quarry,        149 

"        "    on  the  Panama  Conglomerate, 176 

Glacial  waste-weirs,     648 

Glacial  waters;  their  agency  in  erosion, 626 

Glaciers  of  Greenland,       .    . 623 

Gneiss  bowlders.    See  Bowlders,  Erratics, 89 

"        "    in  Crawford  county, 92 

"       at  Ellory  Centre,  N.  Y.,      175 

Grades  of  petroleum.    See  Black,  Green,  &c., 487 

Grand  divide,  highlands  along  the  State  line,      622 

Gravel  pit  wells  on  Titusville  Flats,  Ch.  XXXVI, 679 

Green  oil  from  the  Third  Sand,  p.  160,  358,449 

Group  of  the  Three  Venango  Oil  Sands,  Ch.  XIV, 314 

Grouping  the  Oil  Sands  important  to  Oil  men, 326,328 

Guides  erected  for  drilling  wells,      540 

Headache-post  for  oil  wells,  described, 525 

Hand-wheel  well  measurer,  patented,  393 

Heavy  oil  at  Slippery  Rock  and  Smith's  Ferry  from  a  low  member  of  the 

Mountain  Sand  Group,  .    .  .    .  235 

Heavy  oil  from  the  Venango  First  Sand,  p.  160,     358 

Heat  and  oil.    See  Earth  heat,       .     492 


INDEX  B,  SUBJECTS.  III.  469 

Highland  divide,  overtopped  by  the  Mer-de-glace, §  628 

"       defined  in  Plate  II  bis.,     629 

History  of  Torpedoes.    See  Torpedoes, 576 

"        "    casing  wells.    See  Casing  Wells  PI.  XIV, 478 

Homewood  Sandstone,  top  of  XII,  discussed,         34,37 

"  "          south-west  of  Slippery  Rock  creek,     223,233 

"  "          key  rock  in  Beaver  county,     233 

Hook  for  walking  beam  of  Oil  well, 526 

Horirxm  lines  across  Plate  V,  merely  indicatory, 269 

How  to  secure  good  well  records,         §  374 

Ice  moved  as  governed  by  present  topography,     150 

Ice  advanced  at  a  slow  rate  from  Canada,      624 

Ice-movement  pictured  in  Chap.  XXXIV,      627 

Ice-sheet  moved  east  and  west  along  the  barrier's  face, 635 

Ice-dams  and  Ice-gorges,         642 

Identity  of  Pithole  and  Berea  Grits,  discussed,  Chap.  VIII, 236 

Improvements  in  drilling  wells,  1861-1873,  Chap.  XXIX, 546 

Incrustation  at  wells,  p.  221, 418 

Intermittent  spouting  of  gas  and  water, ........  665 

Interval  rocks  between  Garland  and  Panama  Conglomerates  (600').   •   •      207 

"        between  the  (Bedford)  reds  and  Venango  Oil  group, 231 

"        between  the  two  oil  belts ;  its  extent,  250 

"        between  Ferriferous  Limestone  and  Oil  Sands,  constant,    ....  253 

"        between  Venango  and  Warren  Oil  groups,  p.  160, 358 

"        between  Warren  and  Bradford  Oil  groups,  p.  161,         358 

"        between  Bradford  3rd  Sand  and  Corniierous  Limestone,  p.  164,  .  358 

Invasion  of  water;  how  effected, 479 

Iron  ore  of  Unger's  Hill ;  Siiodgrass  bank, 136 , 146 

Isolation  of  oil-pools  by  water-flooding, 484 

Jack-post  of  oil  well,  described, 515,  note  to  521 

Jars  for  oil  well  sinking,  described,        529,532,538 

"    never  allowed  to  strike  together  by  good  sinkers, 533 

Joints  in  drive-pipe,  maximum  number  23, note  to  554 

Key  rock  to  Oil  well  sections,  Ferriferous  Limestone, 223 

Kindness  of  drillers  and  well  owners  to  the  Survey, 400 

Kinzua  Creek  Sandstone  in  McKean  County, 214 

"        "    =First  Mountain  Sand  ;=Connoquenessing  Sandstone,    ....  214 

Knob,  two  miles  south  of  New  Richmond, 95 

"       at  Hickory  Corners ;  at  Christy's  quarry, 99;  148 

Lake  Erie  once  a  wide  river  valley, ( 618 

"        "    Its  excavation  discussed,  Ch.  XXXIII, ' 622 

Lakes  at  the  heads  of  small  streams,  accounted  for, 645 

Lakes  of  petroleum,  an  absurd  idea, 453 

Land  rising ;  its  effect  on  deposits, 427 

Land  and  sea  alternating  ;  effect  on  deposits, 440 

Length  of  life  of  oil  wells, 462 

Lepidodendron  in  Ellis'  quarry, 104 

Levels  of  the  water  basins  compared, 16 

Levels  of  country  southwest  of  Meadville,         119 

Level  of  highest  point  on  surveyed  line  (1413'), 139 

Levels  of  the  line  southwest  of  Jamestown, 157 

Levels  at  Panama, 167 


470  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Level  of  Rock  City  at  Lottsville  and  Wrightsville  (1950'), §207 

Levels  of  the  Be rea  Grit,  tabulated, 241 

Levels  of  top  of  Third  Oil  Sand,  tabulated,  pp.  140  to  144, 330 

"        "    ranges  between  1000'+  and  500'—  tide,     504 

Level  of  petroleum  in  relation  to  tide, 504 

Levels  of  preglacial  valley-floors,     585 

"       of  Allegheny  River  bed, 591 

"       of  Chautauqua  Lake,  <fcc.,  601 

"       of  Oil  Creek  and  French  Creek  Valley  beds, 615 

Level  of  preglacial  upland  unknown, 623 

Levels  of  low  divides  in  Ohio  and  Indiana,      626 

Level  of  the  Mer-de-glace  surface,  634 

Leveling  along  the  Garland  Conglomerate  outcrop,     27 

Lever,  for  oil  wells, 522 

Lifetime  of  oil  wells,      462 

Life  preserver  for  oil  well,  described, 525 

Limit  of  Northern  Drift  towards  the  South, 646 

Lingula  melia  in  the  Ohio  flagstones, 688 

Link  for  oil  well  engines, 520 

Local  Sand  rock  over  Venango  First  Oil  Sand, 267 

Local  names  given  to  the  Oil  Sands,        378 

Local  popular  arrangements  of  the  Oil  Sands, 380 

Local  glaciers;  local  Drift,   . 642 ;  655 

Localization  of  Oil-horizons, 356 

Low  divides  in  the  Ohio  and  Indiana  barrier,     626 

Lower  Oil  Belt=Southern  Butler-Clarion  belt, 247 

"       its  extent,          248 

Lower  Crawford  shales, 316 

Lower  Barren  Coal  Measures  described,  p.  157, 358 

Lower  Productive  Coal  Measures,  described,  p.  158, 358 

Limestone  of  Meadville,  Ill 

Limestone  (White)  in  the  Harvey  &  Mahan  wells, 290 

Limestones,  local,  probably  often  overlooked,  290 

Machinery  of  oil-boring  and  pumping  described,  Cli.  XXVII, 510 

Mahoning  Sandstone,  oil  bearing  in  Greene  Co., 358 

Main  sill  for  oil  well, 516 

Map  of  dips  of  Oil  Sands,  Plate  IX,  Chap.  XV, 329 

"    of  Butler-Clarion  Oil-belt,  described,  Ch.  XVI, 331 

"    of  Six  wells  measured  at  Petrolia, ...  406 

Marshes  of  Pymatuning  and  Comieaut,     note  to  16 

Materials  for  oil-well-rig.     Sec,  Cost,  538 

Mauch  Chunk  Formation,  No.  XI,  discussed, 33 

"  =interval  between  Garland  and  Sub-Garland, 54 

Meadville  rock :  Meadville  limestone,  95;  111 

Measurement  of  wells,  difficult, 385,394 

"  of  Dennis  well,  .        ...  421 

Mechanical  working  drawings  of  rig,  &c.,  Plate  XIII, 513 

Mer-de-glace.     See  Ice,  Ch.  X XXIV, 624,627 

Mercer  Coal  groiip,  discussed, 34 

Micaceous  sandstone  at  Meadville, 108 

Mnllusks  400'  beneath  Garland  Conglomerate, 86 

Moraine  at  Lottsville, 196 


INDEX  B,  SUBJECTS.  III.  471 

Mountain  Sand  Series,  discussed,  Chap.  VII, §  212 

Mountain  Sands ;  why  unreliable  guides,  228 

Mountain  Sand  group  obscure  west  of  Slippery  Rock, .       .    .      232 

Mountain  Sands  omitted  as  unimportant  from  the  driller's  records  of  oil- 
borings,     279,377 

Mountain  Sand  Group  described,  p.  158, 358 

"          at  Petrolia, 404 

Mountain  Sand  oil  bearing,  locally,  where  the  Venango  Oil  Sand  Group  is 

wanting,        497 

Mud-cracks  in  the  rocks, '...'.  144 

Mud-sills  for  oil-well,  described, 514 

Names  locally  given  to  the  Mountain  Sands, 213 

New  epoch  in  geology  commenced  with  the  Oil  Sands, 438 

New  cuts  made  by  the  postglacial  waters,  southward, 621 

Night-drilling  records  deceptive, 394 

Nomenclature  of  Sand  rocks  local, 378 

"  of  the  Petrolia  district, 404 

Non-producing  areas  of  the  oil  region, 297 

Northern  oil  belt,  called  the  Upper  Oil  belt, 247 

Northern  outlets,  of  the  great  basin  discussed  in  Chap.  XXXI, 596 

Northern  outlet  of  the  Conneaut  basin  described  Ch.  XXXII, 615 

Northern  Drift.     Sec  Drift,     646 

Numbering  of  the  Oil  Sands  confused, 378 

Number  of  specimens  from  measured  wells;  table, 398 

Obligations  of  the  Geological  Survey  to  Oil  men, 372 

Ocean  currents.    See  Currents,      300 

"       discussed,  436 

Ohio  Conglomerate=Garland  Conglomerate, 32 

"    traced  in  Mercer  county,  in  Ohio,       160,684 

Oil.    Its  origin  discussed  in  Chap.  XXVI, 486 

"   of  great  antiquity, 495 

"    probably  not  of  Chemung  age  in  Venango  county 297 

"    derived  from  fucoids  and  mollusks.    Objections, 496 

"    how  converted  from  organic  matter,        502 

"    preserved  in  reservoirs  of  porous  sandstone, 451 

"        "    not  in  crevices  or  caverns,    ...       .    •   • 

Oil  in  Clarion  county  at  first  from  super  3rd  Sand,      340 

Oils  of  different  colors  do  not  mix  by  crevice  passage, 449 

"        "    hence  no  connection  between  two  Oil  Sands,      449 

Oil  seems  to  have  ascended  from  below.    Argument,      497 

"  how  related  to  tide  level, 491,504 

"  never  found  deeper  than  2,000',       506 

"  replaced  by  salt  water  in  some  districts,     509 

"  driven  back  by  water,      483 

Oil  and  gas,  460,475 

Oil  of  Hosmer  run  described,  .    .  87 

Oil  belts,  (two  of  them),  described  in  Chap.  IX,. 247 

"        "    not  connected  by  producing  belts, 247 

"        "    yet  of  the  same  age,  in  the  same  horizon,     251 

"        "     See  Upper  and  Lower  (oil  belts), 

Oil  Creek  classification  of  the  Oil  Sands, 383 

"        "    Section  of  the  measures, 384 


472  III.      REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Oil  Creek  once  flowed  westward  into  French  Creek, §617 

Oil-horizons  all  exhibited  in  Vertical  column  PL  XI,     350 

"        "    local ;  never  overlap, 356 

Oil-horizon  of  Dunkard  Creek,  described,  note  to  358 

Oil  pits  at  Titusville  discussed  in  Ch.  XXXVI,     679 

Oil-pool  history, 471 

Oil-pools  isolated  by  fresh  water  floodings, 484 

Oil-pool  in  gravel  at  Titusville  Flats,  p.  426, 679 

Oil  production  in  the  Butler-Clarion  belt, 336 

"        "    tables  of  quantity  in  the  rock, 453 

Oil  questions  still  to  be  answered,    .  429 

Oil-bearing  Sand  rocks ;  The  Third  and  Fourth, 403 

Oil  Sands.    Non  Chemung  age,  discussed, 88 

"        "    flatter  on  top  than  at  their  bases, 325 

"        "    some  fine,  others  coarse, 455 

"        "    thicknesses, 454 

"        "    structure  shown  in  diagram  XXXV,  p.  267, 482 

Oil  Sand  theory  discussed, 299 

"        "    conglomerates ;  whence  derived, 434 

Oil-Sand-Group.    See  Venango  Oil  Sand  Group. 

"        "    different  when  productive  or  nonproductive, 303 

"        "    nonproductive  where  it  is  of  maximum  thickness, 304 

"        "    Resum6  of  characteristic  features, 308 

"        "    important  to  Oil  men  to  view  it  as  a  single  group, 326,328 

Oil-well  divisible  into  three  parts  or  sections, 546 

"        "    at  Meadville  (Citizen's)  ;  at  Christy  quarry  (Gibson's),     .  112;  155 

"        "    at  Doolittle's;  at  Eureka  (no  water  in  it), 183;  194 

"        "    at  Lottsville,  described,  .  196,197 

"        "    in  Bradford  district  (Dennis  well) .      210 

"        "    at  Pithole ;  Bleaksley's  well  hole, 216 ;  217 

"        "    spouting  gas  and  water  paroxysmally,  . 665 

Oil  wells  ;  their  great  numbers  in  the  region,     359 

"        "    west  of  the  Ohio  line  at  Powers'  corners,  p.  429, 683 

"        "    sunk  too  fast  to    get  good  records, 375 

"        "    drillings  preserved  and  discussed,      660,661 

Oil  well  bailers,  described, 523 

"        "    band-wheel  shaft,  arm  and  flanges, 526 

"        •«    bits,  described,     538 

"        "     boiler  for  engine, 517 

"     bolts  for  saddle, 526 

"        "    boxes  for  band-wheel  shaft, 526 

"        "    bull-wheel,  described, 523 

"        "    carpenter's  rig,  described, ' 510 

"        "    casing-head,       555 

"    centre-irons  for  walking-beam  and  sarnson  post, 526 

"    collar  to  shaft,       note  to  527 

"    conductors,  described, 512 

"    crown-pullej', 526 

41    drive-pipe,  described,  p.  316,  note  to  §  554  ;  540 

"    drilling-tools,  described  in  Ch.  XXVIII,  PI.  XVI.,    ....  528,529 

"    derrick-pulley,     526 

"    engines,  described,  Plates  36,  37, 517,518 


INDEX  B,   SUBJECTS.  III.  473 

Oil  well  headache-post,  described, §  525 

"  "  hook  for  walking-beam, 526 

"  "  jack-post,  described, 515 

"  "  jars,  described,  529,532,538 

"  "  joints  in  drive-pipe, note  to  554 

"  "  lever, 522 

"  "  life-preserver,  described, 525 

"  "  link v 520 

"  "  machinery  for  boring  and  pumping,  Ch.  XXVII, 510 

"  "  main-sill, 516 

"  "  materials  for  rig, 538 

"  "  pitman  dimensions, note  to  524 

"  "  pulley  for  derrick, 526 

"  "  reamers,  538 

"  "  reel  for  measuring  wells 392 

"  "  reel  for  sand-pump, 522 

"  "  reverse  link, 520 

"  "  rig  of  oil-well  described,  .  .  .....  510 

"  rig-irons,  described,  Plates  XIII,  XXXVIII, 526 

"  "  rivet-catcher,  described, 568 

"  ««  rope-measurer,  389 

"  "  rope-socket, 529 

"  "  saddle, 526 

"  "  samson-post,  described, 515,526 

"  "  sand-pump  reel,  described, 522 

"  "  seed-bag  section  of  wells, 547 

"  "  set-screw, note  to  527 

"  "  swivel  invention  for  temper-screw, 534 

"  "  sinker-bar  described, 531,538 

"  soft  plug,  p.  221, 418 

"  "  spudding, 539 

"  "  sucker-rods,  described, 551 

"  "  temper-screw,  526,534 

"  "  throttle-valve,  described,  519 

«  torpedoes,  described  in  detail, 562,572 

"  "  tubing,  described, 549,556 

"  "  walking- beam,  connections,  stirrup, 516,524,526,533 

'«  "  water-pump  of  1868,  described, 558 

"  "  water-packer  m  cased  wells, 562,569 

"  "  weight  of  tools,  537 

«•  "  wheel  for  measuring  depth, 393 

"  "  wheel  and  bell,  Ramsey's, 393 

"  "  wing  of  jars,  . 532 

"  "  wing-rope  socket, 536 

"  "  wire  measurement  of  depth, 388,392 

"  "  wooden  conductors  described, 519 

"  "  wrist-pin, note  to  524 

Oil-well  records  only  reliable  when  grouped,  229 

"  "  six  at  Petrol ia ;  SatEdenburg;  1  at  Bradford, 379 

Oil-well  sections,  line  of  80  miles,  Plate  IV 220 

"  "  from  Pleasantville  to  Smith's  Ferry,  ...  220 

"  "  from  Pleasantville  to  Bullion,  discussed,  221 


474  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Oil  well  sections,  southwest  of  Bullion,  discussed, §  223 

"        "    at  the  John  Smith  well,  discussed, .   .  224 

"        "    southwest  of  the  John  Smith  well,     226 

"        "    southwest  of  Slippery  Rock  creek, 232 

"        "    to  prove  Pithole  Grit=Berea  Grit,  Plate  IV, 237 

"        "    to  show  variability  of  Oil  Sands, 257 

"        "    continued  on  Plate  V,  Chapter  X. 

"        "    over  a  large  area, 292 

"    of  Venango  Oil  Sands,  page  (plates)  129,  131,  133,  135, 315" 

"        "    from  Petrolia  to  Cherry  run,  Plate  V, 275 

"        "    from  Oil  City  to  Clarion,  Plate  VI, 276 

"        "    from  Pittsburgh  to  Clarion,  Plate  VII,     285 

Olean  Conglomerate=Garlancl  Conglomerate, 32 

"        "    at  Dennis  well,  421 

Order  of  the  Conglomerates  suggested  for  future  research, 213 

Organic  theory  of  the  origin  of  petroleum,      488 

Origin  of  petroleum  discussed  in  Ch.  XXVI,     486 

"        "    river  terraces, 658 

Outlines  of  the  Garland  Conglomerate,  Pike's  ridge, 5 

Packed  wells,  571 

Panama  Conglomerate  discussed,  Ch.  VI, 33,164 

"        "    older  than  the  Garland  Conglomerate  proved, 165 

"        "    alternate  layers  described, 171 

"        "    range  of  Knobs  described  in  detail, 174 

"        "    at  Lewis'  quarry  in  New  York, 177 

"        "    at  Chautauqua  quarry  in  N.  Y., 178 

"        "    at  Bleaksley's  quarry  in  Pennsylvania, 179 

"        "    at  Blocksville  and  Ashville, 174 

"        "    at  Ellory  Centre,     175 

"        "    at  William's  quarry, 176 

"        "    at  Middleton's  quarry, - 185 

"         "    at  Carroll's  quarry, 186 

"        "    topography  described, 188 

"        "    not  the  Erie  and  Crawford  quarry  rock, 189 

"        "    at  the  top  of  the  Eureka  Oil  well, 194 

"        "    not  one  of  the  Venango  Oil  Sands,  argued, 198 

"        "    of  Chemungage,  proved,  206 

"        «'    not  the  same  as  the  Garland  Conglomerate, 207 

"        "    absent  from  the  Lottsville  well, 210 

"        "    Resume  of  the  statements,  306 

Parallelism  of  the  Ferriferous  Limestone  &  Oil  Sand  horizons, .253 

Pebbles  of  the  Garland  Conglomerate  are  round,      58 

"         of  the  Sub-Garland  Conglomerate  are  flat, 58,  93 

"         of  the  Garland,  at  Meadville,  small,  white,     .   .       107 

"         of  the  Panama  Conglomerate,  large  and  flat,  178 

"         of  the  Northern  drift, 646 

Pebble  bed  at  Meadville,  water  bearing, 110 

Percentage  of  good  to  bad  oil-well  records, 361 

"  of  petroleum  to  the  Oil-Sand,  discussed, 451 

Petrolia  wells  measured  ;  diagrams;  Ch,  XX, 251;  395;  401 

Photograph  of  oil-well  drillings,  in  bottles  on  rack, 317 

Picture  of  the  advance  of  the  Canadian  mer-de-glace,  . 624 


INDEX  B,   SUBJECTS.  III.  475 

Pine  trees  on  rocks, §  63 

Pioneer  oil-wells  always  the  best  of  a  district,     460 

"        "    longer  lived  than  other  wells, 462 

Pipe-driving  described, 540 

Pithole  Grit— Third  Mountain  Sand, 216 

"        "    enclosed  in  the  Crawford  Shales, 217 

"        "a  persistent  rock  over  large  areas,  230 

"        "    maximum  thickness  S.  W.  of  Slippery  Rock  Creek, 232 

"        "    ="80  foot  sand"  of  the  Beaver  Falls  well, 234 

"        "    =Berea  Grit  of  Ohio,  discussed  in  Ch.  VIII, 236 

"        "    sometimes  unrecognized  in  Clarion-Butler  wells,        236 

"        "    exceptionally  absent  from  the  Harvey  well,  Plate  V, 271 

"        "    thins  in  a  south  east  direction 280 

"        "    Resume1, 310 

"        "    shown  in  plates  pp.  129,  &c., 316 

"        "    often  obscure  in  a  section  or  record, 317 

"        "    described  on  p.  159, 358 

"        "    sometimes  holds  fresh  and  sometimes  salt  water, 450 

Pitman  dimensions, note  to,.  524 

Plant  bed,  400'  beneath  Garland  Conglomerate, 86 

Plants  drifted  into  the  Oil  Sands, 88 

"      in  sandstone  beneath  Christy 'sore, 147 

"      in  the  lower  Snodgrass  quarry  sand,     156 

"      in  the  Panama  Conglomerate  at  Chautauqua, 190 

Pleasantville  well-record, 384 

Pocono  formation=Sub-Garland  ;  current-bedded, 58 

Pools  of  petroleum ;  history  of  pools, 458,459;  471 

"        "    isolated  by  water  flooding, 484 

Popular  classification  of  the  Oil  Sands,  misleading, 380 

Porous  sands,  reservoirs  of  petroleum,  described, 451 

Post-glacial  gaps  in  the  southern  barrier, 626 

"        "    rock  cuts  in  various  places, 621 

Pottsville  Conglomerate,  No.  XII,  discussed, 33 

"        "    not  wholly  represented  by  Homewood  Sandstone,     36 

"        "    described  lithologically  by  H.  D.  Rogers  in  1858, 38 

"        "    base  ill  defined  as  a  geological  horizon,        265 

"        "    described  as  a  group  of  Conglomerates, 358 

Pre-glacial  topography  same  (essentially)  as  now, 580,625 

"         erosion,  p.  438,      

"         water-way  slopes,  discussed,      ....  585 

"         northern  outlets  of  drainage  into  Lake  Erie,  Ch.  XXXI,   .   .    .  596 

"         outlet  of  the  Conneaut,  northward,  Ch.  XXXII, 615 

"         floor  of  Lake  Erie,         .   .  ' 618 

"         height  of  table  lands  in  N.  W.  Pennsylvania, 623 

"         divide,  or  highlands, 639 

Preparing  to  drill  a  well,  described,    ...  539 

Pressure  of  gas  discussed  ;  130  Ibs.  to  the  inch 500 ;  644 

Productus  in  interval  beneath  Garland  Conglomerate, 81 

"          on  Crooked  creek.      145 

"          in  the  Panama  Conglomerate,      190 

Producing  and  non-producing  areas  contrasted,  Ch.  XIII, 297 

Production  of  oil  from  the  Butler-Clarion  belt,  Ch.  XVI, 336 


476  III.          REPORT   OF  PROGRESS.    JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Profile  Section  of  the  Butler-Clarion  oil  belt §  340 

Profile  in  Crawford  county, 120 

"        "    from  Lake  Erie  to  West  Virginia,  PI.  X  &  XI,  Ch.  XVII,  .   .   .341 

Proportion  of  erratics  to  the  rest  of  the  Drift, .  659 

Publicity  opposed  to  Oil-business  policy, 370 

Pulley  for  oil-well  derrick,  ...  526 

Pumping  oil  wells;  in  1868  ;  described, 474;  557 

Pumping  gas  to  restore  dead  wells,  described, 467 

Pyramidal  hills  made  by  ice  erosion, 653 

Qualities  of  various  oil-sands,  455 

Quantity  of  oil  which  can  be  held  by  a  Sand,     451 

Quantities  of  oil,  tabulated, 453 

Quarries  at  Meadville  ;  S.  W.  of  Meadville, 103 ;  121 

"        in  Ohio,  described  in  Ch.  XXXVII, 684 

Questions  respecting  the  theory  of  oil,  still  unanswered,       429 

Rack  for  measuring  and  exhibiting  drillings,  PL  XXXIII, 413 

Ramsay's  wheel  and  bell  well-measurer, 393 

Rate  of  drilling  shown  on  Plate  XVII, 411 

Rate  of  percolation  of  oil  through  rocks, 501 

Rate  of  advance  of  the  great  glacier  from  Canada, 638 

Reamers  for  oil  boring,  described, 538 

Rearranged  materials  of  deposit, 440 

Record  of  James  well  modified.    See  Well  records, 294 

Red  oil  of  the  district, 644 

Red  shale  above  First  Venango  Oil  Sand  in  Bullion  well, 221 

Red  shale  in  the  John  Smith  well, 224 

'<        "    characteristic,        '. 230 

"        "    thins  southwest  from  J.  Smith  well,      231 

"        "    cut  out  southwest  of  Slippery  Rock  Cr.,      232 

Reds  lie  parallel  with  Ferriferous  Limestone,  PI.  IV, 239 

"     under  Pithole  Grit  and  also  under  Berea  Grit, 245 

"     in  Ohio,  as  the  Bedford  Shale, 245,246 

Red  belt  of  Penna.  and  Ohio  shown  on  the  map, 246,309 

Reds  overlie  the  Venango  First  Oil  Sand,     247,282 

"     in  the  Rohrer  well,      .  .    .          281 

Reds  in  the  Venango  Oil  Sand  Group  intervals, 283 

"     between  the  Venango  Second  and  Third  Sands,     283 

Reds  below  the  Venango  Third  Sand  for  300  feet, 284 

Reds  under  the  Panama  Conglomerate,  Eureka  well, 194 

"        "    in  the  Lottsville  oil  well, 195,197 

Reds  local  and  variable, 284 

"     increase  in  number  and  thickness  southeastward, 284 

"        u    thicken  from  oil  belt  into  nonproducing  area, 803 

"        "    not  a  trace  of  them  seen  west  of  Petrolia, 405 

Red  rock  near  the  bottom  of  well,       675 

Reel  for  measurement  of  well's  depth, 392 

"        "    for  sand-pump,     ... 522 

Relations  of  petroleum  to  sea-level, 491 

Reservoirs  of  petroleum  in  porous  Sandstones, 451 

Resumg  of  structural  features  of  Venango  O.  S.  Group 305 

Reverse  link  for  oil  well  engine,       520 

Reversed  direction  of  post  glacial  streams,      606 


INDEX  B,   SUBJECTS.  III.   477 

Reversal  of  the  Tionesta  valley  drainage, §  608 

Rig  lor  oil  well  boring,  described,        510 

Rim  of  the  Chautauqua  basin,  defined,      12 

Ripple-marks  in  Garland  Conglomerate,  Ellis',     104 

"        "    in  shale  at  Meadville, 113 

"        "    in  Sub-Garland  Sandstones,  Henry's  run,    .   .   .   .* 144 

Rivers  of  the  Oil  Region, 8 

Rivet-catcher  for  oil-wells,  described,         568 

Rock  cities  made  by  Garland  and  Sub-Garland  rocks, 51,  57 

Rock  city  of  Pike's  Rocks,  described, 61 

"        "    at  Lotsville,  Garland  Conglomerate, 67 

"        "    at  Panama,  Panama  Conglomerate, 166 

Rock  cities  of  the  Panama  Conglomerate,        .  172 

Rock  city  of  Garland  Cong,  between  Lottsville  and  Wrightsville,    .   .    .      207 

"        "    at  Salamanca,  .  .  209 

Rock  cities  between  Carrollton  and  Bradford, 212 

Rock  City  near  Nelson  Centre  in  Ohio, 684 

Rope  measurement  of  wells, 389 

Rope-sockets  for  oil-wells,        529 

Rounded-wing  for  jars, 532 

nhynchonella  in  Panama  Conglomerate, 186,190 

"    in  shales  over  the  Panama  Conglomerate, 192 

Saddle  for  oil-rig,  526 

Saint  Lawrence  Valley,  the  preglacial  outlet,      623 

Salamanca  Conglomerate,  discussed,       33 

"        "    at  Ellicottville,  discussed,  208 

"        "    not  noticeable  in  the  Dennis  well, 210 

»        "    Resum6 ;  probably  200'  to  300'+Panama  Cong., 307 

Salt  water  replaces  oil  in  some  districts,  ...       509 

"        "    in  Butler  county  in  sands  holding  fresh  water  in  Venango  county,  450 

Samson  post  for  oil  well,  described, 515,526 

Sand  from  the  Garland  Conglomerate, 63 

Sand-pump  and  pumping,  described, 544,522 

Sand-pump  reel  for  oil  well,  described, 522 

Sand-pump  line  for  oil  well,  described,     ...       522 

Sand  specimens  supposed  to  suffice  for  a  geological  opinion  on  the  proba- 
bilities of  oil,  371 

Sands  alternating  with  shales,  PI.  XXXV,  p.  267, 482 

Sandstones  irregular, 254 

Sandstone  layers  local  over  Venango  First  Oil  Sand, 267 

Sandstone  in  Tarentum  well— top  of  Butler  Oil  Group, 270 

Sea  beaches  discussed,        .  430 

Sea  bottom  emerged  in  Venango  Oil  Sand  age  ? 439 

Sea-weed  origin  of  Petroleum  ;  objections,    .  *. 496 

Sea-level;  does  it  affect  the  existence  of  oil, 491 

Second  Mountain  Sand=Garland  Conglomerate, 31 

"        "    =Garland=Olean  Conglomerate, 215 

Second  Butler=First  Venango  Oil  Sand 272,326,404 

Second  Venango  Oil  Sand  is  oil-bearing  when  it  is  not  immediately  under- 
laid by  Third  Oil  Sand,  .    .  497 

"        "    exposed  in  hill  sides  at  Warren, 358 

"        "    at  Petrolia,      404 


478  III.       REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.      JOHN  F.  CARLL. 

Secrecy  maintained  about  results  of  trial  wells, §  366 

Section  of  measures  at  Garland, 74 

Section  below  Garland  Conglomerate  on  Cotter's  farm,     74 

"        "    at  Bates',  W.  Spring  Creek, 84 

Section  at  Johnson's  saw-mill, 85 

Sections  at  Meadville, 111,117 

Section  at  Coal  Pit  (Mushrush's), 124 

"       at  McEntire's  coal  pits, 130 

"       at  Hazen's  coal  mine,      140 

"       at  Adamsville,  on  Crooked  creek, 145 

"       at  Jamestown, 181 

"       at  J.  H.  Christy's  quarry,         156 

Section  of  Panama  Conglomerate  at  Middleton's,      185 

"        "    at  Moravian  quarry,  Carroll's,  186 

"        "    above  Panama  Cong.  (54')  in  Coffee  Creek  valley,     203 

Section  of  measures,     ....  , 217 

Sections  of  Well  records  to  show  the  Venango  Oil  Group, 219 

Section  on  profile  of  the  Butler-Clarion  belt,         340 

"        "        from  Lake  Erie  to  West  Virginia,    .    .       343 

Section  of  Oil  Horizons,  Plate  XI, 350 

Section  of  all  the  Formations, 358 

Sections  of  Petrolia  measured  wells, 379 

Section  of  Dougherty's  well,  pp.  196,197, 409 

"        "    Evans'  well,  pp.  198,  199, 409 

"        «    Hazel  wood  well,  pp.  200,201,     409 

"        «    Morehead  &  Larden  well,  pp.  202,203, 409 

"        "    Sutton  well,  pp.  204,205, 409 

"        "    Kern  well,  pp.  206,207, 409 

Sections  of  Edenburg  wells,  Ch.  XXI,      414 

Section  of  Brundred  well,  pp.  214,215, 414 

"    Columbia  O.  Co's  No.  19,  pp.  216,217, 414 

"        "    McGrew  well,  pp.  218,  219,      .    .  414 

Section  of  Dennis  well  in  Bradford  field,  Ch.  XXII, 420,425 

Sections  at  Oil  City,  &c.,  p.  436,     '. 688 

Sections.    See  Oil  Well  Sections. 

Sediments  discussed, 430 

Seed-bag  section, 547 

Set-screw  for  oil  rig,        .    .  note  to  527 

Swivel  invention  for  temper-screw, 534 

Shale  oil  at  Warren.     See  Slush,  oil, 456 

Shape  of  Oil  Sand  deposit,  described,     325 

Sharon  Coal  bed,  Chapter  V, 118 

Sharon  Coal  group,  local ;  not  seen  in  wells, 312 

"        "    productive  of  coal  in  Ohio, 312 

Sharon  Conglomerate=Garland=Olean  Conglomerate 32 

Shenango  Sandstone=Sub-Garland=Sub-Ol8an, 50,54,  56 

"        "    at  Foulke's  quarry  in  Mercer  County, 160 

Shore  lines  in  the  Venango  Oil  Sand  age ? 439,440 

Sigillaria  in  Garland  Conglomerate, , 96 

"        "    at  Ellis'  quarries.        104 

Sinker-bar  for  oil-rig  described, 531,538 

Size  of  oil-rig  tools, 535 


INDEX  B,   SUBJECTS.  III.  479 

Six  sections  at  Petrolia,  carefully  measured, §  379 

Sixth  Oil  Sand  in  some  places,    . 323 

Slope  of  pre-glacial  water-ways,    ...  .    .       583, 615 

"        "    post-glacial  river  bed  ;  tabulated, 592 

«        "    French  Creek  valley  bed, 618 

"        "    Canadaway  Creek  bed,        .    .  619 

Slow  drilling  through  Pithole  Grit  and  Oil  Sands, 318 

Slush  oil  at  Warren  ;  at  Bradford, 456;  457 

Smith  well  a  turning  point,      225 

Snodgrass  Upper  quarry  rock, 151 

Snodgrass  Lower  quarry  rock  and  plants, 151,156,158 

Soapstone,  a  driller's  term,  described,  ...  501 

Soft  rocks  always  under  the  Venango  Oil  Sand  Group, 320 

Soil  a  guide  to  rocks,  ...  91 

Source  of  petroleum,  discussed, 489 

Southern=Lower  Oil  Belt, 247 

Specimens  of  well  drillings.how  best  collected  <&  kept,  .  398,406,409,413,660,661 

Spirifers  under  Garland  Cong., 81,145,154 

"    over  Panama  Cong.,      192,204 

S.  disjunctus  in  Panama  Cong., 186,190 

Spirit-levelling  along  line  of  survey, 27 

Spudding,     ....  539 

Stages  in  the  genesis  of  oil, 503 

Stick-measurements  of  oil-wells, 390 

Stoneham  Sandstone,  base  of  Warren  Oil  Group, 358 

Story  of  an  oil  pool,  471 

Stoss  side  in  glaciation,  98 

Stray  Oil  Sand  joins  the  Venango  Third, note  329 

String  of  drilling  tools, 529 

Stringing  the  tools,         ...  541 

Strophomena,  found  on  Crooked  creek, 145 

Structural  variations  in  Oil  Sands, 357,482 

Style  of  well,  changed  from  186 1  to  1878, 549 

Sub-Garland  Conglomerate— Sub-Olean  Conglomerate,      48 

"        "    =Shenango,  Ferriferous,  Yellow  Sandstone, 48 

"        "    described,  making  rock  cities,       56,  57 

"        "    not  seen  in  oil  wells,         58 

"        "    habitually  ferriferous  or  ferruginous, 58 

"        "    at  Pike's  Rocks,  described,     64 

"        "    at  Garland  ;  on  McClay's  hill, 73 ;  89 

"        "    on  Woodcock  Creek  ;  flat  pebble,  Bate's  hill, 90 ;  93 

"        "    atMeadville;  under  Trues' quarry,        110;  111 

"        "    blocks,  on  Unger's  hill ;  on  Henry's  run, 134;  143 

"        "    at  Snodgrass' quarry  ;  Pymatuning  ridge,       151;  159 

Submergence  improbable,    ....  26 

Sub-Oil  Sand  Group  formations  in  deep,  dry  wells,     320 

Sub-Olean=Sub-Garland  Conglomerate, 51 

Sub-Panama  Shales,  described, 169,191,201 

Sucker-rods,  described, 551,  note  to  558 

Summit  basins,         641 

Super-Oil  Group  formations  (400'  soft)=Crawford  shales, 326 

Super-Panama  Cong,  rocks  (225  ;  300' soft)  described, 191,202 


480  III.        REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.       JOHN  F.   CARLL. 

Survey  line  through  Warren  and  Crawford,    .   .       §27,91 

Surveys  in  the  Butler-Clarion  oil  region, 332 

Surveys  of  White  and  Chance, 334 

Swamps  on  divides,        652 

Table  of  deep,  dry  holes, 506 

Table  of  thickness  of  Venango  Oil  Sand  Group,     322 

Table-land  of  northern  Pennsylvania, 622 

Tailings  in  glaciation,     93 

Temper-screw  for  oil  well ;  described, 526 ;  534 

Terraces  of  Spring  creek, 658 ;  77 

Theory  of  Oil  Sand  Deposition, 427 

"        "    Origin  of  Oil,  Ch.  XXVI 486 

"        "    Genesis  from  gas,  condensed, 498 

"        "    important  in  a  practical  sense, 508 

Thickness  of  the  Oil  Sand  Group  tabulated, 322,454 

Third  Mountain  Sand=Pithole  Grit,  which  see, 216 

Third  Oil  Sand  of  Petrolia  not  the  Venango  Third, 327 

Third  Venango  Oil  Sand,  and  Stray, note  to  329 

Third  Oil  Sand  belt,    .    .  335 

Third  Bradford  Oil  Sand,  p.  162, 358 

Third  Sand  of  Gibson  Well=?  Venango  First, 155 

Third  Sand  Oil  Belt,  402 

Third  Sand  at  Bradford,  McKean  county, 457 

Third  Oil  Sand  generally  oil-bearing, 497 

Throttle-valve  described,      519 

Three  Oil  Sands,  Ch.  XIV, 314 

Tide-level  relations  to  oil, 504 

Tidioute  section, 384 

Time  rack,  Plate  XXXIII, 413 

Timber  in  country  southwest  of  Meadville,     129 

Top  of  Venango  Oil-Sand  Group  fixed  by  sections 277 

Top  of  an  Oil-Sand  more  level  than  its  bottom,         325 

Topography  of  northern  belt  of  Garland  Cong.,  Chap.  I,     1 

"  and  soil  together  indicate  the  geology,     91 

"  of  to-day,  governed  the  flow  of  the  ice, 150 

"  of  the  Panama  Conglomerate  belt  of  country, 188 

"  post  and  pre-glacial.  essentially  the  same, 580 

"  modified  however  by  ice  erosion,  Ac., 580 

"  of  valleys,  threefold,        .  605 

"  proves  that  Oil  creek  flowed  into  French  creek, 617 

"  of  the  Conneaut  region, 619 

"  pre-glacial,  described,  625 

"  of  summit  basins,  varied  by  ice  debris, 642 

Tools,  how  drawn  from  oil-well, 543 

Torpedoes  in  cased  wells ;  use  described, 562;  576 

Tours  by  day  and  night,  in  well-sinking,      542 

Tradition  that  wells  are  dry  because  not  deep  enough, 369 

Transition  Chemung,  Catskill  strata, 299 

Tubing  a  wet  hole,  described, 549,556 

Tunangwant  Conglomerate, 213 

Two  separate  oil  belts,  247 

Two  separate  Third  Oil  Horizons  discovered, 340 


INDEX  B,  SUBJECTS.  III.  481 

Unity  of  the  Venango  Oil  Sand  belt,  important, §  218 

Uniformity  of  measures  above  the  red  horizon, 231 

"        "    Venango  Oil  Sand  Group  for  62  miles, ...  324 

Unwritten  history  of  oil  wells, 369 

Upper  Barren  Coal  Measures,  described, 358 

Upper  Productive  Coal  Measures,  described, 358 

Upper  Crawford  Shales, 316 

Upper  or  northern  Oil  Belt= Venango  Belt, 247 

Upper  non-Drift  bearing  layers  of  the  glacier, 636 

Variations  in  Sedernentary  structure,  .  357 

Variation  confined  to  interval  between  Reds  and  Venango  Oil  Sands,     .   .  231 

Variable  sandrocks ;  variability  local, 264;  256,382 

Valley  features  of  the  Oil  region, 10 

Valleys  divisible  into  three  classes, 605 

Valley-floor  levels.    See  Levels, 616 

Valleys  of  the  pre-glacial  age, 616 

Valleys,  bowl  shaped, 644 

Venaugo  Oil  Sand  Group,  a  well  denned  unit, 200,230 

"        «    this  is  an  important  geological  discovery, 217,218 

"        "    thin,  south  west  from  the  J.  Smith  well, 231 

"        "    cut  out,  southwest  of  Slippery  Rock  creek, 232 

«        "    described  in  detail  in  Chap.  XIV, 314 

"        "    origin  and  propriety  of  name,  discussed, 319 

"        "    300' to  380' thick.    See  Tables  and  Sections, 321,322 

"        "    described  on  page  159, 358 

"        "    not  seen  in  the  Dennis  well  at  Bradford, 423 

«        "    structure  described  in  Ch.  XXIII, 427 

Vertical  Sections  of  Oil-Horizons,  Plate  XI, 350 

Walking-beam;  connections;  stirrup, 516,524,526,533 

Warren  Oil-Horizon, 348 

Warren  Oil-sands  never  struck  beneath  the  Venango  Oil-sands,     .....  349 

Warren  Oil  Group  described, 358 

«'        "    field,  production, 456 

Water  invades  oil-wells  ;  movement  among  wells, 458,479 

Water-basins  in  the  oil  region ; 11 

"        "    levels  compared,     16 

Water  wells  in  gravel, 83 

Water-bed  of  loose  pebbles  at  Meadville, 110 

Water  wells  sunk  to  supply  dry  hole  engines, 446 

Water-pump  of  1868,  described, 558 

Water-veins  encountered  after  casing, 560 

Water-packer  in  cased  wells, 562,569 

Watson's  deep  well, 354 

Waverly  fossils  in  the  Sub-Garland  rocks, 58 

Weight  of  tools,    .       .537 

Wells  at  Hosmer  run,  discussed, 87 

Wells  supposed  popularly  to  be  dry,  because  too  shallow, 369 

"     affected  by  each  other  through  crevices,  but  rarely, 448 

"     killed  by  new  wells  sunk  in  the  vicinity, 462  to  466 

"     sunk  deeper  and  deeper  in  the  series, .564 

"     shown  in  detail  in  diagram, 567 

Well-bore  cross  sections  in  Plate  IV, 547 

31  III. 


482  III.   REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.   JOHN  F.  CARLL. 


Well-boring  in  1861,  1868,  1878,  described, §549,554,560 

Well-measurement, 385 

Well  owners  set  little  value  on  good  records 375 

Well  sizes, 452 

Well-records  withheld  from  geologists  and  others, 359 

few  of  them  reliable ;  reasons  given, 361 

Circular  issued  by  the  Survey, 363 

good  ones  not  appreciated  at  their  true  value 365 

kept  secret  in  new  territory  ;  reasons, 366 

doctored  for  various  reasons  stated, 367 

difficult  to  obtain  by  geologists 371 

bad  ones  the  cause  of  confusion  in  theories, 374  4 

how  to  secure  good  ones, 374 

defective  for  geological  uses, 376 

written  out  from  specimen-drillings,     407 

should  be  made  only  at  the  well  itself, 408 

of  wells  at  Petrolia,  Ac.^  tabulated,  pp.  194  to  208, 409 

described  in  detail,  Ch.  XXXV,  pp.  398  to  420, 660 

discordant,  when  collected  by  different  observers, 674 

Wheel,  and  wheel  and  bell  measurer  for  oil  wells, 393 

White  limestone  in  Boj'd's  hill,  Harvey  and  Mahan  wells, 290 

Wing  of  jars,  described, .   .  532 

Wing-rope  socket,  described,          536 

Wire-rope  measurement  of  wells,     388,392 

Wooden  conductors,  described,     519 

Working  drawings  and  plans,  Plate  XIII, 513 

Wrist-pin, note  to,  524 

Yellow  Sandstone=Sub-Garlandi=Shenango,     49 

Yield  of  an  acre  of  petroleum  rock, 454 

Zones  of  ice  in  the  mer-de-glace, 634 


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of  Report,  fO  89 ;  postage,  $0  16.  Price  of  Atlas,  $  1  32 ;  postage,  $0  08. 

D.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  BROWN  HEMATITE  ORE  RANGES  OF  LE- 
HIGH  COUNTY — 1874,  with  descriptions  of  mines  lying  between  Emaus,  Al- 
burtis,  and  Foglesville.     By  Frederick  Prime,  Jr.    8vo.,  pp.  73,  with  a  contour- 
line  map  and  8  cuts.    Price  in  paper,  fO  50 ;  postage,  $0  04.    Price  in  cloth, 
$0  75 ;  postage,  $0  06. 

DD.  THE  BROWN  HEMATITE  DEPOSITS  OF  THE  SILURO-CAMBRIAN  LIME- 
STONES OF  LEHIGH  COUNTY,  lying  between  Shimersville,  Millerstown, 

(1) 


Schencksville,  Ballietsville,  and  the  Lehigh  river— 1875-6.  By  Frederick 
Prime,  Jr.  8  vo.,  pp.  99,  with  5  map-sheets  and  5  plates.  Price,  §1  60 ;  post- 
age, SO  12. 

E.  SPECIAL  REPORT  ON  THE  TRAP  DYKES  AND  Azoic  ROCKS  of  South- 
eastern Pennsylvania,  1875;  Part  I,  Historical  Introduction.  By  T.  Sterry 
Hunt.  8  vo.,  pp.  253.  Price,  50  48 ;  postage,  §0  12. 

P.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  JUNIATA  DISTRICT  on  Fossil  Iron  Ore 
Beds  of  Middle  Pennsylvania.  By  John  H.  Dewees.  With  a  report  of  the 
AUGHWICK  VALLEY  AND  EAST  BROAD  TOP  DISTRICT.  By  C.  A.  Ashbur- 
ner.  1874-8.  Illustrated  with  7  Geological  maps  and  19  sections.  8  vo.,  pp. 
305.  Price,  52  55 ;  postage,  £0  20. 

OS-.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  BRADFORD  AND  TIOGA  COUNTIES — 1874-8.  I. 
LIMITS  OF  THE  CATSKILL  AND  OHE.MUNG  FORMATION.  By  Andrew  Slier- 
wood.  II.  Description  of  the  BARCLAY,  BLOSSBURG,  FALL  BROOK,  ARNOT, 
ANTRIM,  AND  GAINES  COAL  FIELDS,  and  at  the  FORKS  OF  PINE  CREEK  IN 
POTTER  COUNTY.  By  Franklin  Platt.  III.  ON  THE  COKING  OF  BITUMIN- 
OUS COAL.  By  John  Fulton.  Illustrated  with  2  colored  Geological  county 
maps,  3  page  plates  and  35  cuts.  8  vo.,  pp.  271.  Price,  51  00;  postage  §0  12. 

OJG.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS.  THE  GEOLOGY  OF  LYCOMING  AND  SULLIVAN 
COUNTIES.  I.  Field  Notes,  by  Andrew  Sherwood.  II.  Coal  Basins,  by  Frank- 
lin Platt.  With  two  colored  geological  county  maps  and  numerous  illustra- 
tions. 8  vo.,  pp.  268.  Price,  $1  08 ;  postage,  50  14. 

GGrQ.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  1876-9.  8  vo.,  pp.  120.  The  Geology  of 
POTTER  COUNTY,  by  Andrew  Sherwood.  Report  on  the  COAL  FIELD,  by 
Franklin  Platt,  with  a  colored  geological  map  of  county,  and  two  page  plates 
of  sections.  Price,  fO  58 ;  postage,  $0  08. 

H.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  CLEARFIELD  AND  JEFFERSON  DISTRICT 
OP  THE  BITUMINOUS  CoA  FIELDS  of  Western  Pennsylvania — 1874.  By 
Franklin  Platt.  8vo.,  pp.  296,  illustrated  by  139  cuts,  8  maps,  and  2  sections. 
Price  in  paper,  $1  50 ;  postage,  50  13.  Price  in  cloth,  $1  75 ;  postage,  50  15. 

HH.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  CAMBRIA  AND  SOMERSET  DISTRICT 
OF  THE  BITUMINOUS  COAL  FIELDS  of  Western  Pennsylvania — 1875.  By  F. 
and  W.  G.  Platt.  Pp.  194,  illustrated  with  84  wood-cuts  and  4  maps  and  sec- 
tions. Part  I.  Cambria.  Price,  §1  00 ;  postage,  50  12. 

HHH.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  CAMBRIA  AND  SOMERSET  DISTRICT 
OF  THE  BITUMINOUS  COAL  FIELDS  of  Western  Pennsylvania — 1876.  By  F. 
and  W.  G.  Platt.  Pp.  348,  illustrated  by  110  wood-cuts  and  6  maps  and  sec- 
tions. Part  II.  Somerset.  Price,  50  85  ;  postage,  $0  18. 

HHHH.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  INDIANA  COUNTY — 1877.  By  W.  G. 
Platt.  Pp.  316.  With  a  colored  map  of  the  county.  Price,  50  80 ;  postage, 
?0  14. 

I.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  VENANGO  COUNTY  DISTRICT — 1874.    By 
John  F.  Carll.    With  observations  on  the  Geology  around  Warren,  by  F.  A. 
Randall ;  and  Notes  on  the  Comparative  Geology  of  North-eastern  Ohio  and 
Northwestern  Pennsylvania,  and  Western  New  York,  by  J.  P.  Lesley.    8  vo., 
pp.  127,  with  2  maps,  a  long  section,  and  7  cuts  in  the  text.    Price  in  paper, 
50  60;  postage,  50  05.    Price  in  cloth,  SO  85 ;  postage,  50  08. 

II.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS,  OIL  WELLS,  RECORDS,  AND  LEVELS — 1876-7. 
By  John  F.  Carll.    Pp.  398.    Published  in  advance  of  Report  of  Progress,  III. 
Price,  SO  60 ;  postage,  50  18. 

J.  SPECIAL  REPORT  ON  THE  PETROLEUM  OF  PENNSYLVANIA — 1874,  its 
Production,  Transportation,  Manufacture,  and  Statistics.  By  Henry  E.  Wrig- 
ley.  To  which  are  added  a  Map  and  Profile  of  a  line  of  levels  through  Butler, 

(2) 


Armstrong,  and  Clarion  Counties,  by  D.  Jones  Lucas :  and  also  a  Map  and 
Profile  of  a  line  of  levels  along  Slippery  Rock  Creek,  by  J.  P.  Lesley.  8  vo., 
pp.  122 ;  5  maps  and  sections,  a  plate  and  5  cuts.  Price  in  paper,  $0  75  ;  post- 
age, $0  OG.  Price  in  cloth,  $1  00 ;  postage,  $0  08. 

K.  REPORT  ON  GREENE  AND  WASHINGTON  COUNTIES — 1875,  Bituminous 
Coal  Fields.  By  J.  J.  Stevenson,  8  vo.,  pp.  420,  illustrated  by  3  sections  and  2 
county  maps,  showing  the  depth  of  the  Pittsburg  and  Waynesburg  coal  bed, 
beneath  the  surface  at  numerous  points.  Price  in  paper,  §0  65  ;  postage,  $0  16. 
Price  in  cloth,  $0  90 ;  postage,  $0  18. 

KK.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  FAYETTE  AND  WESTMORELAND  DIS- 
TRICT OF  THE  BITUMINOUS  COAL  FIELDS  OF  WESTERN  PENNSYLVANIA— 
1876.  By  J.  J.  Stevenson ;  pp.  437,  illustrated  by  50  wood-cuts  and  3  county 
maps,  colored.  Part  I.  Eastern  Allegheny  County,  and  Fayette  and  West- 
moreland Counties,  west  from  Chestnut  Ridge.  Price,  $1  40 ;  postage,  $0  20. 

KKK.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  FAYETTE  AND  WESTMORELAND 
DISTRICT  OF  THE  BITUMINOUS  COAL  FIELDS  of  Western  Pennsylvania— 1877. 
By  J.  J.  Stevenson.  Pp.  331.  Part  II.  The  LIGONIER  VALLEY.  Illustrated 
with  107  wood-cuts,  2  plates,  and  2  county  maps,  colored.  Price,  $1  40 ;  post- 
age, $0  16. 

L.  1875 — SPECIAL  REPORT  ON  THE  COKE  MANUFACTURE  OF  THE  YOUGH- 
IOGHENY  RIVER  VALLEY  IN  FAYETTE  AND  WESTMORELAND  COUNTIES, 
with  Geological  Notes  of  the  Coal  and  Iron  Ore  Beds,  from  Surveys,  by  Charles 
A.  Young;  by  Franklin  Platt.  To  which  are  appended:  I.  A  Report  on 
Methods  of  Coking,  by  John  Fulton.  II.  A  Report  on  the  use  of  Natural  Gas 
in  the  Iron  Manufacture,  by  John  B.  Pearse,  Franklin  Platt,  and  Professor 
Sadtler.  Pp.  252.  Price,  $1  00 ;  postage,  $0  12. 

M.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  LABORATORY  OF  THE  SURVEY  AT 
HARRISBURG — 1874-5,  by  Andrew  S.  McCreath.  8  vo.,  pp.  105.  Price  in  pa- 
per, $0  50 :  postage,  $0  05.  Price  in  cloth,  $0  75 ;  postage,  $0  08. 

MM.  SECOND  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  LABORATORY  OF  THE  SUR- 
VEY at  Harrisburg,  by  Andrew  S.  McCreath— 1876-8,  including  I.  Classifica- 
tion of  Coals,  by  Persifor  Frazer.  II.  Firebrick  Tests,  by  Franklin  Platt. 
III.  Notes  on  Dolomitic  Limestones,  by  J.  P.  Lesley.  IV.  Utilization  of  An- 
thracite Slack,  by  Franklin  Platt.  V.  Determination  of  Carbon  in  Iron  or 
Steel,  by  A.  S.  McCreath.  With  3  indexes,  plate,  and  4  page  plates.  Pp.  438. 
Price  in  cloth,  $0  65  ;  postage,  $0  18. 

N.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS— 1875-6-7.  Two  hundred  Tables  of  Elevation 
above  tide  level  of  the  Railroad  Stations,  Summits  and  Tunnels  ;  Canal  Locks 
and  Dams,  River  Riffles,  &c.,  in  and  around  Pennsylvania ;  with  map  ;  pp.  279. 
By  Charles  Allen.  Price,  $0  70 ;  postage,  $0  15. 

O.  CATALOGUE  OF  THE  GEOLOGICAL  MUSUEM — 1874-5-6-7.  By  Charles  E. 
Hall.  Part  I.  Collection  of  Rock  Specimens.  Nos.  1  to  4,264.  Pp.217.  Price, 
$0  40 ;  postage,  $0  10. 

P,  1879— ATLAS  OF  THE  COAL  FLORA  OF  PENNSYLVANIA  AND  OF  THE 
CARBONIFEROUS  FORMATION  THROUGHOUT  THE  UNITED  STATES.  87  plates 
with  explanations.  By  Leo  Lesquereux.  Price,  $3  35;  postage,  fO  22. 

PP.  UPPER  CARBONIFEROUS  FLORA  OF  WEST  VIRGINIA  AND  S.  W. 
PENNSYLVANIA,  with  38  plates  and  text.  By  Wm.  Fontaine,  A.  M.,  and  I.  C. 
White.  Price,  $2  25 ;  postage,  $0  17. 

Q.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  THE  BEAVER  RIVER  DISTRICT  OF  THE  BITU- 
MINOUS COAL  FIELDS  OF  WESTERN  PENNSYLVANIA.  By  I.  C.  White ;  pp. 
337,  illustrated  with  3  Geological  maps  of  parts  of  Beaver,  Butler,  and  Aile- 

(3) 


gheny  Counties,  and  21  plates  of  vertical  sections — 1875.    Price,  $1  40 ;  post- 
age, $0  20. 

QQ.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  1877.  The  Geology  of  LAWRENCE  COUNTY, 
to  which  is  appended  a  Special  Report  on  the  CORRELATION  OF  THE  COAL 
MEASURES  in  Western  Pennsylvania  and  Eastern  Ohio.  8  vo.,  pp.  336,  with 
a  colored  Geological  Map  of  the  county,  and  134  vertical  sections.  By  I.  C. 
White.  Price,  50  70 ;  postage,  ?0  15. 

QQQ.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  1878.  8  vo.,  pp.  233.  The  Geology  of 
MERCER  COUNTY,  by  I.  C.  White,  with  a  colored  geological  map  of  county, 
and  119  vertical  sections.  Price,  $0  60;  postage,  fO  11. 

V.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS — 1878.  Part  I.  The  Northern  Townships  of  But- 
ler county.  Part  II.  A  special  survey  made  in  1875,  along  the  Beaver  and 
Shenango  rivers,  in  Beaver,  Lawrence,  and  Mercer  Counties.  8  vo.,  pp.  248, 
with  4  maps,  1  profile  section  .and  154  vertical  sections.  By  H.  Martyn 
Chance.  Price,  f!0  70 ;  postage,  $0  15. 

W.  REPORT  OF  PROGRESS  IN  1879.  8  vo.,  pp.  232.  The  Geology  of  CLAR- 
ION COUNTY,  by  H.  Martyn  Chance,  with  colored  geological  map  of  county, 
a  map  of  the  Anticlinals  and  OIL  BELT,  a  contoured  map  of  the  Old  River 
Channel  at  Parker,  83  local  sections  figured  in  the  text,  and  4  page  plates. 
Price,  $0  43 ;  postage,  $0  12. 

Other  Reports  of  the  Survey  are  in  the  hands  of  the  printer,  and  will  soon 
be  published. 

The  sale  of  copies  is  conducted  according  to  Section  10  of  the  Act,  which 
reads  as  follows : 

*  *  *  "Copies  of  the  Reports,  with  all  maps  and  supplements, 
shall  be  donated  to  all  public  libraries,  universities,  and  colleges  in  the  State, 
and  shall  be  furnished  at  cost  of  publication  to  all  other  applicants  for 
them." 

Mr.  F.  W.  FORMAN  is  authorized  to  conduct  the  sale  of  reports ;  and  letters 
and  orders  concerning  sales  should  be  addressed  to  him,  at  223  Market  street, 
Harrisburg.    Address  general  communications  to  WM.  A.  INGHAM,  Secretary. 
By  order  of  the  Board, 

WM.  A.  INGHAM, 

Secretary  of  Board. 
Rooms  of  Commission  and  Museum  :  Address  of  Secretary  : 

ggS  Market  Street,  Harrisburg.  223  Market  Street,  Harrisburg. 


TM 


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